For days now my hands change from hot to cold. Has this anything to do with RA? My occupational nurse who I see for my hands suggested I might have raynauds. Any advice please
I have raynauds, fingers go white and bloodless in the cold and when you finally get warmth into them they tingle. I also have RA and have high levels of inflammation in my hands and feet. This feeling is like sunburn on the inside, the burning sensation is very painful. It's a dry prickly heat. The severity comes and goes but there is usually a degree of heat most of the time. Hope this helps.
My son has reynauds but not yet diagnosed with RA although he has had some joint pain. Reynauds is an autoimmune thing and one autoimmune can lead to another. Best to keep a watch on it. Thyroid issues is another common one, or also sjorgrens syndrome. Get yourself some handwarmers and avoid getting cold because each time your hands get cold can increase the autoimmunity. Moving to a warmer climate is a good idea.
It is not unusual for an RA patient to develop secondary Raynaud's Syndrome. That means RA is your primary disease
Raynaud's typically manifests ib the hands and feey. It is a reaction very similar to the frost bite process except that our surrounding could be warm with just our hands subjected to cold and the vascular vessels in our hands will constrict, greatly reducing the blood flow to our hands. Think reaching into the, freezer...I wear gloves just to protect my hands from the cold freezer air and the grasp of a cold item I am removing from the freezer.
Obviously, a freezer is an extreme example but it is the decreasing sudden change that forces the syndrome to react...using warm water in a sink shifting to cold water, reaching out of the warn house door for mail in the cool outdoors.
Just as in frostbite, we may see white fingers or splotchy fingers without pain but as soon as we withdraw our hand to warmth, the pain can become extreme...just as the warm up frostbite process is painful. Warming up slowly helps, sudden hot water can be excruciating. The reason forcthe pain is that when our blood vessels constrict, the nerves are no longer being oxygenated and their sensitivity decreases. The warm up involves these nerves waking up and initially becoming hypersensitive.
My feet and legs also have Raynaud's after 54 years of JRA...sliding inbetween cold sheets can be excruciating...I keep an electric mattress warmer between the mattress and the mattress topper even in summer.
A few adjustments and one can live quite successfully despite having Raynaud's Syndrome.
I have had Raynaud's for 50 years, but just came down with rheumatoid arthritis 7 months ago. My Raynaud's is only cold--my hands, face and feet go white and numb. I haven't ever experienced any heat in those areas, just cold with the veins shutting down. Maybe my rheumatoid factor isn't as severe as others.
thank you for your wealth of information. I find it so very helpful and encouraging. I am just starting out so to speak with RA and when I read all your knowledge and how you have handled this disease well then I feel hopeful that I too can learn to live with it and be grateful for new meds and good days when they come
yesterday Thanksgiving celebration was exhausting even though my dauther did 99% of the work.
My son has Raynaulds and something called POT so I hope he doesn't inherit RA . POT--postural orthostatic tachycardia. It is uncertain if it is autoimmune according to some experts but exhaustion is part of his difficulty, brain fog
if you look at yourself in the mirror and smile ten times, you will convince your heart to join in...hugs all around
Thanks with providing me with lots of information
wink wink
Thank you. All info is appreciated, am learning about RA, through this forum ☺