Sjogrens Diagnosis and Riding

[onthehill]

I see from doing a search there are some folks here with the dx . I was a little surprised there were quite a few!

Anyway, to make a REALLY long story short … My biggest issues are joint pain in my fingers and hands. Makes carrying hay bales a challenge at times … :eek:

Just starting with dryness … Do any of you find that this comes and goes? Mine is most noticeable at night. My first symptom was a vasculitis rash 6 years ago that continues to wax and wane. The whole problem started after I has a severe strep infection. My rheum. thinks this flipped the switch.

Anyway … Sorry for the ramble.

Wondering if any of you are on plaquinil? Other medications? How does it affect you with riding/barn work?

Do you find you are limited at all?

Is riding good for sjogrens? Why? Do you know?

I’ve had two positive ANA speckle test with high counts B titers within a 6 month period. My doc wants me to get MRIs of my hands to rule out psoriatic arthritis … X-rays were negative.

[RMJacobs]

I’ve had Sjogren’s for quite a long time (maybe a dozen years? maybe more? can’t remember when it started). I don’t find that it makes any real difference to my activities. I am very careful to keep my eyes moist (gel drops during the day, eye ointment at night). While it’s kind of a pain doing stuff outside with my eyes running all the time, I just do it. My horse is used to my eyes dripping on his leg when I bend over to clean a hoof.

The thing about Sjogren’s is that autoimmune diseases seem to travel in packs. Your joint pain may be something else altogether, and it sounds like your doctor is thinking that too.

I was on plaquenil for several years and did fine with it. It didn’t affect what I did except for having to be careful about sun exposure. If I weren’t allergic to most sunscreen, it would not have even been a blip on my radar.

One thing I’d suggest with Sjogren’s is to take very good care of your teeth. I finally had to give mine up. They just couldn’t stand up to a childhood full of dental neglect, some serious illnesses when I was very young, and then Sjogren’s in later life. My teeth were in pitiful shape even before the Sjogren’s started, so they never really had a chance. If yours are in good shape, it is worth it to be careful so you can keep them.

Rebecca