First, I ned to give you the links I forgot about yesterday.  The post about blood tests and our area for newly diagnosed.  Sorry about that.  You may also want to check out Arthritis Introspective to see if they list an RA support group in your area.   As for counsellors... they may not know much about living with RA, but in my experience (and I've seen a  few over the years), a good counsellor who does cognitive therapy can go there, even without having had direct experience with people who have a chronic illness. It's a matter of skill - find a good one and they can help you through pretty much anything.