@koni3739, welcome. This looks like a terrible flare. I'm sorry to hear that it has been long lasting and just not subsiding.

I moved your post to the existing discussion:
- Psoriatic Arthritis: How do you manage PA and flares? https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/psoriatic-arthritis-257d5c/

I did this so that you can read through some of the recent posts and connect more easily with other members living with psoriatic arthritis, like @marylou705 @jewel8888 @jlo70 @nemo1 @smernigegm @carolee888 @wsh66 and more.

Koni, you mentioned that you might wish to consult with experts at Mayo Clinic. To request an appointment, please start here: http://mayocl.in/1mtmR63

Hi @koni3739, I’m SO sorry to hear how terrible your flare-up has been. That’s very much beyond what I’ve experienced so far with PsA, but I can tell you my journey so far, brief as it’s been in comparison to others’ journeys, and I’ll share what I’m finding makes a difference to keep my PsA more under control.

I was diagnosed in February 2020, and I only have the arthritis element, not the psoriasis (so far, anyway). I’ve gotten some pretty debilitating pain and weakness in my left foot and ankle, my left big toe is semi-rigid from the arthritis, both ankles are weak, both feet have tendinitis across the top of them, and I have sun that comes and goes in both of my biggest thumb joints. I already if a bad lower back, so I don’t know if PsA is contributing to that or not. I also struggle with pretty bad brain fog, which gets in the way of me performing at the very high level I did in the past in my job. It’s a source of great frustration and stress for me.

I started on Sulfasalazine and Otezla this year, and I find that it’s helped reduce some of the inflammation and resulting physical issues, but not enough. My doc wants me to go on Humira, but I’m truly scared to do so due to the black box warning for potential lymphoma, esp bc there’s a lot of cancer in my family history. I’ve learned that foods make a HUGE difference for me in my inflammation and in the level of physical issues I have. If I eat super clean—fish, chicken, turkey, veggies including kale, collards, and other similar leafy greens, whole grains, fruit, reduced dairy, no processed foods or grains—I feel really, really good, relatively speaking. My pain almost goes away completely, my brain is clearer, I have more energy…so many good things come of it. When I eat less well for a day or a handful of days, I can definitely feel it, and it makes my angry at myself for not following the protocol that I know works.

I also do Pilates a few times a week, which helps with my mental health, and is hopefully helping my body get stronger and my balance get better. I’m working on a lot of mental and emotional things to try to not be so hard on myself for what I’m going through and how I feel, and also for not beating myself up when I don’t eat right and end up with pain. It’s def a journey, and not an easy one.

I don’t know if any of this will be helpful to you, but if you haven’t already tried super clean eating, I’d highly recommend trying it. It makes a world of difference for me. Basically, just follow a clean Mediterranean diet and you’ll be eating right.

If nothing else, I hope my story will help you feel less alone in this difficult journey. We’re here to support each other bc no one really knows the struggles we go through. Sending lots of healing thoughts your way 🥰
—J