Had a dr appointment just after lunch and it went pretty good. I had wrote out the main issues I was dealing with (pain, fatigue, memory, etc.) and gave that to him.
He said the fatigue and memory could be related to the depression yet, so he wanted me to give that a little more time. That was a bit frustrating but it’s not the end of the world so . . . And we discussed the numbness and he gave me a couple of things to try for that.
He was concerned more about the pain though this time. He wanted to know what pain meds I had tried and if they worked, etc. He was concerned about finding answers but also trying to keep costs down for me since I don’t have insurance right now.
He ordered some blood work to be done today and said we could maybe have the results yet today or tomorrow. So we are now officially playing the “It could be _____________” game. 
I had to go over to the hospital to get that done - and that was a MAJOR frustration! They said they couldn’t do that today (I wasn’t already scheduled) and they wouldn’t schedule me a time today neither - I have to call back in the morning to get that done. Which means a special trip down there and now we won’t know anything till sometime next week - if they even get it done by then. 
Ok, guess I will have to eat my words!
After talking to the Dr. again this morning I was given a 11:00 appointment with the lab. And now only 3 hours later we got the results back. He had ordered a sedrate (?) to check for inflammation markers. It came back at 48 - which they said was twice the level it should have been. So now I will have to go back in and get a RA factor test done.
I am SO anxious! I have dealt with this for so long and so much want an answer - yet I am suddenly terrified of finding out!
Hi @strugglinginKs! The sed rate is a measure of inflammation. So it can go up for a number of reasons, but since you are having pain, it makes a lot of sense to do the rest of the testing for autoimmune conditions, including RA factor. Having answers can be a mixed blessing. It can be hard to accept, but it also opens up treatment options. It is good though that the doctor is moving forward with additional blood work to get some more answers (maybe).
Sharon
Had a RA Factor test done Monday morning and they said we could have results in 24 hours or it could be a week. So wasn’t expecting anything for a while, but the doctor’s office called this morning and had the results back - it’s negative.
So he says it is just severe arthritis. He did prescribe Meloxicam, which I am to start after I finish the Prednisone (which will be Thursday), so will see if that helps any.
So your dr doesn’t feel you have fibro?
It was never mentioned on Thursday - He was “almost certain” it was RA. I haven’t actually spoke with him since, just his nurse. He wants to see me in Jan. if I don’t go in before. He never gave any other ideas for why the sed rate came back high - so that is still a mystery. He said Thursday that OA can raise it slightly, but mine was over twice what it should have been.
I don’t know what to think at this point. He might be right. 3 out of 4 grandparents (not sure on the 4th) have or had OA and/or RA, so that is what he is basing it on.
I guess I am glad to know it is not RA, but feel rather like I am back to square one. I really don’t know what it is. He didn’t test for anything but the RA, no tender points, no x-rays, nothing. Only thing different is that I now have prescription pain meds which I hope help and I am out roughly $300.
Wow. Good luck going down the road, if its fibro, meds did nothing for me but made things worse. I too will be going back to my neurologist in Dec.to find out what the MRI of my spine tells him. I do have arthritis on my spine, along with 7 bone spurs on the left side of my neck, and a shattered tail bone. But for some reason about a couple of months now I feel like my back is just going to break into. I have only 2 hours in a day where I can get things done. I feel like I’m going to be a casualty of this thing they labeled as fibromyalgia.