Figuring out autoimmune disease where to start?

did they test you for PMR.

cherner85, ask your primary to order a ANA (antinuclear antibody test). If it is positive you can proceed to additional testing to determine which autoimmune situation is involved. ANA is a serum test, so it's easy. And the best place to start if you suspect autoimmune disease. I would avoid talking about it at all to disbelievers.
I hope you get answers that have remedies.

PMR new drugs to treat

Is this something a primary Mayo doc would do?

No. I am not familiar with this. What does it entail?

You didn't mention your age. PMR is primarily a disease of older people, over 50 at a minimum but more likely in people 60 or older. So if you younger than 50, PMR likely doesn't apply to you. But assuming it does, here is some information about it.

Rheumatologists are the best doctors for diagnosing and treating PMR. I have PMR and a related problem GCA, so I'm familiar with the symptoms.

This is the AI output I got from googling "How is PMR diagnosed":
"Polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) is diagnosed primarily through a detailed medical history, physical examination, and blood tests like the erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein (CRP) to check for inflammation, as there is no single definitive test for PMR; a doctor will also need to rule out other conditions with similar symptoms.
Key points about PMR diagnosis:
No specific test:
There is no single test to diagnose PMR, meaning a doctor will rely on a combination of factors to make a diagnosis.
Medical history and physical exam:
The doctor will ask about your symptoms, particularly pain and stiffness in the shoulders and hips, especially in the morning, and perform a physical examination focusing on these areas.
Blood tests:
The most important blood tests are the ESR and CRP, which are elevated in cases of inflammation and can help support a PMR diagnosis.
Ruling out other conditions:
Since symptoms can overlap with other conditions like rheumatoid arthritis, the doctor will need to rule out other potential causes through further testing and evaluation. "

The standard treatment for PMR is prednisone, but there are some newer drugs that are also used. Since PMR is so hard to diagnose, one way of diagnosing PMR is whether the person responds well to prednisone. In some cases the person's pain and stiffness are helped within a few hours.

There is a Mayo Clinic support group specifically for PMR (Polymyalgia Rheumatica), so you can get a lot more information there if you're interested.

cberner, yes. Any primary care physician should be able to order ANA. If they feel incapable ask for a referral to a rheumatologist.

jeff97 gave a pretty detailed explanation. Google all you can on it. As jeff mentioned the fact that prednisone works is sometimes a diagnosis. As a previous pmr sufferer I was diagnosed by rheumatologist at Mayo. Prednisone at the right dose(20mg to start) is a miracle. Dont get fooled by the steroids though. Prednisone can become the enemy. PMR can last for years and most people cannot get off the steroids. google prednisone and adrenal insufficiency.

one other comment. Like many autoimmune diseases dont expect to find what caused it. As you say looking for a root cause is useless. The medical field has no idea. Stress? genetics? diet? some sort of trigger like covid vaccine? All they can do is give you medication that causes even more damage. Your symptoms are very typical of PMR.

He did! Thank you.
I should mention I am just under 40 and yes had some adrenal insufficiency as well. Perfect. I’ll see if I can find a GP that would be helpful. I did read on another thread that it is hard to get in there with rheumatologist. Sometimes it’s hard to get these tests if everything else looks pretty good it seems.