Hello there,
I know, it is frustrating and I do understand where you're coming from! Unfortunately, if you are allergic there isn't much you can do straight off other than follow the doctor's orders.
It took me years to get a diagnosis and treatment and I would have been upset too if I had been told to wait for three further months before being able to continue treatment.
It is probabaly no consolation but plaquenil does take rather a while to kick in (months rather than weeks) so you would most likely have had to use some other kind of medication to control things until then anyway.
Can you not go to your GP and ask him/her for something to try and control that joint pain? Had you not had any relief froms NSAIDs or something else previously?
I had a slightly different problem in that I was only put on plaquenil and got to the stage where I couldn't walk due to pain. My GP saw me immediately and phoned through to the rheumy who told him her preferences for treatment.
Otherwise I would just phone back again to the rheumy's office and explain to the nurse just how bad things are. And don't say "I'm in pain!", that is a very vague notion to them. Say "I can't do X, Y or Z", or "I'm not even able to do..."
Just some suggestions, hope they help,
hugs :hug:
Katharine
I know, it is frustrating and I do understand where you're coming from! Unfortunately, if you are allergic there isn't much you can do straight off other than follow the doctor's orders.
It took me years to get a diagnosis and treatment and I would have been upset too if I had been told to wait for three further months before being able to continue treatment.
It is probabaly no consolation but plaquenil does take rather a while to kick in (months rather than weeks) so you would most likely have had to use some other kind of medication to control things until then anyway.
Can you not go to your GP and ask him/her for something to try and control that joint pain? Had you not had any relief froms NSAIDs or something else previously?
I had a slightly different problem in that I was only put on plaquenil and got to the stage where I couldn't walk due to pain. My GP saw me immediately and phoned through to the rheumy who told him her preferences for treatment.
Otherwise I would just phone back again to the rheumy's office and explain to the nurse just how bad things are. And don't say "I'm in pain!", that is a very vague notion to them. Say "I can't do X, Y or Z", or "I'm not even able to do..."
Just some suggestions, hope they help,
hugs :hug:
Katharine
