Aching/Chills in the evening hours
I have RA and taking Methatrexate, Voltaren and Plaquenal. I also am prescribed Ultram for pain when needed, but I prefer to take Tylenol instead. I am also considering the option of Enbrel of which I haven't made up my mind about yet. However, I find that my flare ups mostly start in the early evening and go throughout the night, especially in the early hours when I wake up all achy, with chills and in alot of pain. The only comfort I find is in taking Tylenol, which helps relieve the achiness and relieves the pain. Any other suggestions? Will a heating pad help? I live in a warm climate so an electric blanket is not an option this time of year, but I used it quite frequently in the winter months.
The aching and chills are probably from a low grade fever due to your flare. A heating pad definitely will help with the nightly aching. The problems with a flare is that if you are not getting much sleep due to pain and throbbing it intensifies the flare. What I do before bed is take a very hot bath. Not only does is take weight off your throbbing joint, the heat helps the throbbing. Also if you get a heating pad for your joint I would recommend getting a bean bag or a rice bag heating pad that will mold to whatever joint you need it to. Speak with your rheumatologist and your primary. They may want to temporarily increase your pain medication or try you on a sleeping pill. Lack of sleep causes more pain which is a vicious cycle. Make sure you speak to your doctor, he may be able to help. Good luck and best wishes!
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