a quick health update
I figured I’d better write down how things are going right now, because who knows what my health will be like in a little while... I quickly forget how things were a few weeks ago, how symptoms were and how it all started. So this is mainly just for myself, to remember it all.
During the week of my birthday in May, I went to see my family doctor; my wrist had been hurting for a while, and I really wanted to find out what was causing it. The pain would come and go, but it would always subside if I got some rest. I wore my brace more often, and after a few days, it would go away. But it always came back. I thought maybe I’d overused it at work?
Our family doctor examined my wrist and thought it might be tendonitis. So I got a referral to a hand therapist. There was a waiting list, and I was finally able to see him on July 6.
The hand therapist examined me and asked me a lot of questions. I’ve posted about it here. To briefly summarize: he suspected the pain was caused by my hypermobile joints, asked if there was a family history of osteoarthritis or arthritis, and wanted to test my hand strength at the next appointment (at a different location). He also advised me to see if I recognized any symptoms of EDS in myself, because if so, there might be more treatment options available to me. He was going on vacation after my appointment, so we scheduled a new appointment for early August.
So there were four weeks between the first appointment on July 6 and the second today, August 4. And so many things changed in those four weeks!
It started with pain in my fingers. The lumps on my left hand (ring and index fingers) - which have been there for several years and never used to hurt - were now causing pain more and more often. And on my right hand, I was now experiencing pain in my fingers every day (especially my index finger). Lumps have also appeared there in the meantime, and they have been getting bigger in that short time.
I’ve started keeping track of the symptoms and have written them down in my log: morning stiffness, redness, swelling, a feeling of tightness, pain, a throbbing sensation in my finger on some days, difficulty bending my fingers, morning nausea, an occasional general feeling of being unwell, extreme fatigue, and a reduced appetite on some days.
It’s concerning that so many symptoms have suddenly appeared in such a short time — just a few weeks. I immediately wonder: is this related to the pain in my wrist? Is it the same thing, or something else? And where did this pain suddenly come from?
I’ve asked the internet a thousand times whether it could be rheumatoid arthritis or osteoarthritis. I’ve looked up symptoms and searched for photos to try to make sense of it all.
During our weekend trip to the Veluwe, all these symptoms really flared up, and I’ve been worried about them ever since. Especially on the days when my finger(s) are warm, red, and throbbing.... So while I was still on vacation, I asked my doctor for a referral. Luckily, I got it right away. Unfortunately, there’s an average wait time of 40 days, meh.
Now that the new lump on my index finger is growing so fast and I’m experiencing pain more and more often, I’m seriously wondering how I’m supposed to live with this for another 40 days? I have a feeling that something is brewing inside my body that I shouldn’t wait that long to address…
This morning I had an appointment with my family doctor to see if there’s anything we can do in the meantime. He examined my hands and told me he usually would've ordered a blood test to check for arthritis and inflammation. But since I'm on the list to see a rheumatologist, he wants to wait for that. He strongly suspects that it is something rheumatic with inflammation. So to get through the next month until my rheumatology visit, he subscribed me painkillers with anti-inflammatory properties, to get it under control. That's a relief!
When I got home from the doctor, the letter from the hospital came and my appointment is made for September 1st. So more news in a month...