Any members with gout?

B

buds444

Sergeant
Full Member
Minuteman
May 30, 2011
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Utah
#1
I happen to have the luck of suffering from gout, and currently am enjoying a flare up right at the flexing joint of my ankle. There are few things worse than a big toe flare, but this one take the cake so far. Takes my breath away.

What does everyone do for pain? I'm currently without health insurance and going to get a recheck from my doc for 1k just so he can prescribe worthless prevention crap isn't really up my alley.

Most flares I can handle fine, but there are some that I can only handle because I haven't another option.

I'd love to hear from others who may enjoy the same fate. Oh. I'm 27. Don't know if that matters.

- Brandon
 
#2
Re: Any members with gout?

Hello Brandon, I was about your age when I first got the gout. I got it in the big joint of my big toe the first time. It was the most painful thing I have felt. Since then I have had it in my ankle and knee. When I got it in my toe I went to the doctor, and he grabbed my toe and pulled it sideways, I think I flipped in the chair 3 times, he said you got the gout. I took allupurnol pills for a long time and never had any more problems. I didn't renew my prescription three months ago, and no problems so far, knock on wood. I am 37 now, party a little less, and eat a little better. I have friends and family that get the gout. I tell them to get the pills and go on.
Good luck
 
#4
Re: Any members with gout?

I was initially prescribed 300mg a day of allopurinol 2 years ago when i finally went in to confirm it was indeed gout. I first got it when i I was 20 while in russia. The allopurinol didn't seem to do a thing. I average about one flare each month, some lasting for a long long time, 3 weeks or more, some only a week. Occasionally I can go a month or two between flares, but usually, I'll flare, and if I'm truly unlucky, the healing flare will jump from joint to joint. This one in particular went from my big toe, to my pinkie toe, to my current ankle joint. I've had all my joints flare, up to my hip, but this one by far is the most difficult to deal with.

And I know what you mean about rowdy dr's testing you out. Mine flexed my big toe all the way back during a flare, and I just about lost it.
 
#6
Re: Any members with gout?

The allupurnol they prescribed was keep the flare ups away. The indomethacin was prescribed during a flare up to help clear it up. Usually a couple of pills and it went away. I don't think the indomethacin is good for the rest of your body, so they don't give it out with out blood work. People laugh at me when I tell them this, but one time I had the gout in my big toe and I had to shut the ceiling fan off because the air from the fan was causing my big toe to throb. Not a fun condition.
 
#7
Re: Any members with gout?

Three ingredients for controlling GOUT

1- Colchicine = acts like a roadblock for the Gout. You take it when you first feel the attack coming.

2- Indomethacin = Is a anti-inflammatory. It helps with the pain associated with the attack. Best taken with food and/or milk.

3- Allopurinol = Helps your body rid itself of the main culprit, URIC ACID. Depending on how much acid you have in your system determines how much of this medication you need to take. This is determined by blood test given by your Doctor. It can also cause a flare up or make one WORSE. So if you've been taking Allopurinol and come under attack, DO NOT quit taking it. Maintain your current level along with Colchicine and Indomethacin.

(This is what my Rheumatologist told me. He said that I had been doing things wrong and that I had been somewhat mis-informed by my family DR.)



I am a GOUT veteran and I have been battling it for several years. Up until recently my success rate of keeping Gout at bay was hit or miss. I had another Gout Veteran with way more experience than myself tell me to go to a Rheumatologist and get that shit squared away because your Family Doctor aint cutting son.

So, the guy I was told to see is a retired Navy Doc with many years treating Arthritis (which Gout is a form of) that just tells you how it is and what you need to do. I like that. He don't beat around the bush.

I am up to taking one 300mg Allopurinol tablet every morning and things are "Quiet". I go back for a blood test next month.


So thats my experience. YMMV depending on your lifestyle and diet.

Get on top of this or you will be in for more frequent and painful visits by the GOUT. This stuff moves around too. I've had it in both feet, both knees, one elbow, one finger, but not all at one time.
 
#8
Re: Any members with gout?

Colchicine was another one I used to take at some point. That and allopurinol seemed to have no use whatsoever in preventing the flare ups. They just still came. Not like clockwork, but to the point where if I had gone longer than a month or two, I knew my time was due.

Prednisone was prescribed with bonky instructions to take it. 4 times a day for 4 days. 3 times a day for 3 days. 2 times.... It didn't work, but I was told it would make my body retain water and make my face look fatter, which I'm not sure if I was being mental when I noticed it or not, but it was something I did indeed see.

I'm highly resistive to any medicine I've ever taken, including the nasty ones. 4 or 5 shots of morphine in a hospital did nothing but make me want to barf as they forgot the don't throw up medicine usually applied with it. Percocet, Vicodin, and Darvocet all have nothing on me. Take more than prescribed and I can benefit from them, but obviously that has it's own complications.

I wonder if my issues with medicine in general would have cause for me to need to take more, although I don't know about the limits. All I know is I need to get back on Insurance so I can make a proper visit to my Rheumatologist , who actually was very very good. Paying 1k plus for a visit though is ridiculous. I'm just in a frustrating point of life.

Do any of you with gout have a supply of true pain killers? Narcotics or whatever works for you? My dr. tried to pretend like i'd never need them. The preventative medicine would work wonders and if i did flare, the prednisone would kill it instantly. Yeah right.

A frustrated guy.

- Brandon
 
#10
Re: Any members with gout?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Dennis_in_VA</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Three ingredients for controlling GOUT

1- Colchicine = acts like a roadblock for the Gout. You take it when you first feel the attack coming.

2- Indomethacin = Is a anti-inflammatory. It helps with the pain associated with the attack. Best taken with food and/or milk.

3- Allopurinol = <span style="color: #CC0000">Helps your body rid itself of the main culprit, URIC ACID </span> . Depending on how much acid you have in your system determines how much of this medication you need to take. This is determined by blood test given by your Doctor. It can also cause a flare up or make one WORSE. So if you've been taking Allopurinol and come under attack, DO NOT quit taking it. Maintain your current level along with Colchicine and Indomethacin.

(This is what my Rheumatologist told me. He said that I had been doing things wrong and that I had been somewhat mis-informed by my family DR.)



I am a GOUT veteran and I have been battling it for several years. Up until recently my success rate of keeping Gout at bay was hit or miss. I had another Gout Veteran with way more experience than myself tell me to go to a Rheumatologist and get that shit squared away because your Family Doctor aint cutting son.

So, the guy I was told to see is a retired Navy Doc with many years treating Arthritis (which Gout is a form of) that just tells you how it is and what you need to do. I like that. He don't beat around the bush.

I am up to taking one 300mg Allopurinol tablet every morning and things are "Quiet". I go back for a blood test next month.


So thats my experience. YMMV depending on your lifestyle and diet.

Get on top of this or you will be in for more frequent and painful visits by the GOUT. This stuff moves around too. I've had it in both feet, both knees, one elbow, one finger, but not all at one time. </div></div>

So if this is the source of the problem, what can be done, through diet, or lifestyle change to avoid it before it starts. What organ processes this? Yuo may also want to consult a natureopathic doc...mabey there is a way to controll this which doesnt require the heavy duty drugs which no doubt take a toll on the body.

I watched my dad suffer with this. He was a miserable guy when it hit. Sorry to hear you young guys are dealing with it. Thought it was only for old folks.
 
#11
Re: Any members with gout?

I don't have problems with gout but I do have uric acid related kidney stone problems. Right around the time I turned 40 I started to get kidney stones and, at its worst, was passing them every week or so. Docs said some people just grow the stones and there's nothing to do other than to drink lots of water and take vicodin when the pain was bad. The pain was so bad that the vicodin didn't really do shit. So I started to take potassium citrate to lower the uric acid levels and also upped my water intake. I still get the stones, maybe once a month now, but they aren't the monsters that I used to get and they usually pass within a day. For the pain the only thing that I've found that really helps is a very hot bath. I'd rather deal with pain than risk becoming addicted to painkillers, so when I get that kind of pain I just fill up the tub with water that is as hot as I can bear and soak in it for 15-30 minutes, and use some epsom salts as well (in the bath water). It generally will make the pain tolerable for at least a few hours.
 
#12
Re: Any members with gout?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: maggot</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Dennis_in_VA</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Three ingredients for controlling GOUT

1- Colchicine = acts like a roadblock for the Gout. You take it when you first feel the attack coming.

2- Indomethacin = Is a anti-inflammatory. It helps with the pain associated with the attack. Best taken with food and/or milk.

3- Allopurinol = <span style="color: #CC0000">Helps your body rid itself of the main culprit, URIC ACID </span> . Depending on how much acid you have in your system determines how much of this medication you need to take. This is determined by blood test given by your Doctor. It can also cause a flare up or make one WORSE. So if you've been taking Allopurinol and come under attack, DO NOT quit taking it. Maintain your current level along with Colchicine and Indomethacin.

(This is what my Rheumatologist told me. He said that I had been doing things wrong and that I had been somewhat mis-informed by my family DR.)



I am a GOUT veteran and I have been battling it for several years. Up until recently my success rate of keeping Gout at bay was hit or miss. I had another Gout Veteran with way more experience than myself tell me to go to a Rheumatologist and get that shit squared away because your Family Doctor aint cutting son.

So, the guy I was told to see is a retired Navy Doc with many years treating Arthritis (which Gout is a form of) that just tells you how it is and what you need to do. I like that. He don't beat around the bush.

I am up to taking one 300mg Allopurinol tablet every morning and things are "Quiet". I go back for a blood test next month.


So thats my experience. YMMV depending on your lifestyle and diet.

Get on top of this or you will be in for more frequent and painful visits by the GOUT. This stuff moves around too. I've had it in both feet, both knees, one elbow, one finger, but not all at one time. </div></div>

So if this is the source of the problem, what can be done, through diet, or lifestyle change to avoid it before it starts. What organ processes this? Yuo may also want to consult a natureopathic doc...mabey there is a way to controll this which doesnt require the heavy duty drugs which no doubt take a toll on the body.

I watched my dad suffer with this. He was a miserable guy when it hit. Sorry to hear you young guys are dealing with it. Thought it was only for old folks.

</div></div>

Everybody makes Uric Acid. In some folks high Uric Acid / Gout is hereditary. Gout is the accumulation of Uric Acid crystals in one particular spot which causes the inflammation. Your body is either making too much, not getting rid of it effectively or a combination of both.

Diet changes can help but I think that the medication is the key to keeping things in check. As you well know, when your body ages, your metabolism changes and more often than not, it slows down. There lays part of the problem.

I tried controlling my Gout by adhering to a strict diet which seemed to work initially but soon proved futile due to flare ups still occurring.

If you were to use Google-Fu and look up Uric Acid and/or Gout , you would find a treasure trove of information explaining what's what and methods to control it.
 
#13
Re: Any members with gout?

Whatever you do, don't just let it go and "deal with it" as best you can. It will almost certainly get worse and worse and can develop into something called "Chronic Gout" which is a nightmare I am told. Remember Gout is a form of arthritis - so it can wreak havoc on your joints in time.

I went through a host of doctor nonsense, origianlly diagnosed with Gout, then possibly the chronic variety...

I finally sought out a Rheumatoligist and it turned out I had Rheumatoid Artritis and not Gout at all, as certain symptoms mimic one another etc.

Unless it is truly impossible, get it checked out properly!
 
#14
Re: Any members with gout?

Hey Buds444
For what it's worth, What ykrvak said has some truth to it.
I know a few old timers that swear by it. would eat a whole bag of cherries at the first signs of gout. maybe it counter acts the acid. ?
 
#15
Re: Any members with gout?

Jeesh.
I dont claim it ,it tries to claim me ,ofton.
left foot big toe joint,immense pain,,,,,,
To control it I use various doses of Braggs apple cider vinegar
Usually about an ounce a day.
Also use wild cherry extract from Swansons
I limit the coffe I drink,red meat and as much stress as possible
.I have used the prescriptions listed above as well.
I would not wish this on any one,it is very painful....
 
#16
Re: Any members with gout?

Indomethacin
Colchicine
Allopurinol

Go to the Dr. and get Allopurinol started take it everyday. Don't skip it you'll likly have a flare up in a few days without it. Get you a 30 count of Indomethacin and the shots the Dr. can give you if your in the middle of a flare up. Colchicine mostly didn't help me other than give me the sh_t's. I've found that cherry juice and dried cherries will help keep a flare up away but you have to take them just like med's everyday. For the dried cherries a hand full a day should help. If you suffer from this every month you need to get the Allopurinol started and get rid of the uric acid. If you just cover it up it will cause you problems down the road. Even if your not in pain from the gout the acid cyctals will still ruin your joints. I've lived and played with the gout fixes for about 10 years now. I started the
Allopurinol 2.5 years ago and have only had flrare ups when I skipped my med's.

Ken
 
#17
Re: Any members with gout?

One more thing stay away from noddles/shellfish of any kind/spice foods/processed winnies. I used to fix me a bowl of Ramen noddle and could fell my toe start hurting before I finish said bowl. Shrimp in a few hours same a winnies.
 
#18
Re: Any members with gout?

1 make sure its gout (uric acid) not pseudogout (calcium pyrophasphate crystals
2 reduce red meats , red beans and alcohol if gout, to reduce flairs
3 if unable to see Doc/cost issues high dose nsaid OTC naprosyn 500 2x/d or ibuprfen 800mg 3xd for 7-10d
4 low dose asprin 325mg acts as a uricosuric (excrets uric acid); high dose the opposite --gout worsens
5 allopurinol or uloric are preventatves( Xanthine oxidase inhibitor) prevents uric acid from being made
6 indocin or steroid short term for severe pain and inflamation
7 colchicine prevents microtubial movement of crystals which Actually spear cells and cause pain ,
8 best to actually get uric acid level checked to ensure it is gout
9 look up gout diet on internet and follow!
10 go to urgent care get a uric acid level if flairs cont to make sure its gout!

YES I'M A DOC ; LOOK UP GOUT DIET ON INTERNET!
 
#19
Re: Any members with gout?

I have true gout. None of the alternative bad options. However, the good news of the day is that my flare up is over for now. After traveling from my big toe, to pinkie toe, to the ankle flexing area it's gone, and I can walk normal, albeit all my muscles and tendons feel like I've been doing calf raises for 2 weeks. Which I guess I have.

I lose faith in medicine over events like these because even when I was diligently following all my prescribed medicines and programs, I still had the same symptoms. A flare up every month or two. Some shorter. Some longer. Some way longer.

I know it's a long term thing as I'm still pretty darn young, but so help me if I lose hope in the whole process.

Naproxyn and Advil alternating seem to give me some flexibility back sometimes during flare ups. If I go solid naproxyn, or solid advil, it doesn't seem to work as well.

As for everyone who offered advice and help, thank you.

It was said before that they wouldn't wish this on their worst enemy and I completely agree. I get migraines quite often, and I'd take a migraine any day of the week over a flare up. Miserable to be sound asleep and bump your big toe and wake up to a feeling you don't understand yet cause you are sleepy, but you just feel like a bomb blew up in your foot.

Thanks again for all the suggestions. Hope all those who have gout are at ease and taking it easy.

- Brandon
 
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