RA and Fibromyalgia Dx?
I’ve (40,f) have had RA for almost 20 years, and for most of that time, mtx alone did the trick. A couple of years ago, the nausea and fatigue from finally caught up to me and I’ve been on a med journey since.
That said, I haven’t felt as good as I did went mtx worked well. Immense fatigue, persistent low-grade soreness in joints, more GI issues, et. I’m currently on a low dose of leflunomide. My rheumatologist just ordered labs and imaging to assess my RA. If the results don’t indicate disease activity or whatever he’s looking for, then he’s leaning toward fibromyalgia. I’m concerned he’s going to write off a lot as fibromyalgia and not really explore other options or have me take the plunge into the world of biologics.
For those of you with a fibromyalgia dx, how did your doctor approach that? If he does say fibro at my follow up appt, I’m at least going to find a second opinion. I’m open to having a fibro dx, but I also want to effectively advocate for myself.
ETA: I just want to clarify: I believe fibro is real and a valid diagnosis. I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if that does end up being the case for me. I was just surprised my rheumatologist suggested that before exploring other options.