Diana 1234's Journal, 02 September 2019

Hugs to you. Hope your arm goes down and you find answers 

Aww. Hang in there girl 💞🧜🏽‍♀️ 

Take care!! Hope you feel better. 

oh my! I hope you get better soon.  

Get well ! 

oh no! make certain hoping it's not gout (which can show up anywhere) or an infection or both! For gout you try over-the-counter cherry capsules ('til you have diarrhea or pain stops whichever comes first--be sure to buy JUST cherry, no additives, spendier + not healthy at all). Have you EVER had a kidney stone? The type of gout you have (if that's it) can be related to kidney stone type usually uric acid or calcium excess (deposits in your hands). Is your hand red? streaks climbing your arm?? THAT'S a dangerous infection not to be ignored. It can go to your heart. WHEN IS YOUR DOC appointment? Ask nicely if you can get a urinalysis (this will tell you if you have excess uric acid--simple, cheap, usually an effective method OR calcium excess). Make a thousand percent sure he/she says it's not and if red, mark the area it climbs daily. Don't wait! ER can be more helpful than urgent care, despite the wait.  

could be anything from Gout to Arthritis, to a parasitic infection! Definately keep seeing different doctors until they confirm it! Catscans dont always confirm everything an MRI will. I want to know your progress so I am a follower now! 

@claireosullivan..you are 3rd person to mention gout. I always thought gout was from drinking and eating bad. I do neither. I am gonna ask dr to check uric acids. Thank u all for concern💜💜 

You could have also come in contact with poison Ivy or another pant while mowing or weed wacking. Taking an intihistamine would let you know if this was the case. I hope you figure it out. I'm going to post one more thing and that's it 

Exercise Exercising increases blood flow to your heart, lungs, and muscles. It can also reduce blood flow to your hands, making them cooler. Sometimes the blood vessels in your hands will counteract this by opening up, which can make your hands swell. In addition, exercising makes your muscles produce heat. In response, your body pushes blood toward the vessels closest to your body’s surface to get rid of some of the heat. This process makes you sweat, but it may also cause your hands to swell. In most cases, swollen hands while exercising aren’t anything to worry about. However, if you’re an endurance athlete, it could be a sign of hyponatremia. This refers to having low levels of sodium in your blood. If you have hyponatremia, you’ll likely experience nausea and confusion as well. Here are a few steps you can take to reduce swelling in your hands while exercising: Remove all your jewelry before exercising. Do arm circles while exercising. Expand your fingers and clench them into a fist repeatedly while exercising. Elevate your hands after exercising. 2. Hot weather When you’re suddenly exposed to unusually hot temperatures, your body may struggle to cool itself down. Normally, your body pushes warm blood toward the surface of your skin, where it cools down by sweating. On hot and humid days, this process may not work properly. Instead, fluid might accumulate in your hands instead of evaporating through sweat. Other symptoms of extreme heat exposure include: rash increased body temperature dizziness or fainting confusion It may take your body a few days to acclimate to hot weather. Once it does, your swelling should go away. You can also try using a fan or dehumidifier for relief. 3. Too much salt Your body maintains a delicate balance of salt and water that’s easy to disrupt. Your kidneys filter your blood all day long, pulling out toxins and unwanted fluid and sending them to your bladder. Eating too much salt makes it harder for your kidneys to remove unwanted fluid. This allows fluid to build up in your system, where it may collect in certain areas, including your hands. When fluid builds up, your heart works harder to circulate blood, which increases blood pressure. High blood pressure puts extra pressure on your kidneys and prevents them from filtering fluid. Following a low-sodium diet can help restore the proper balance. 4. Lymphedema Lymphedema is swelling caused by a buildup of lymph fluid. This condition is most common among people who’ve had their lymph nodes removed or damaged during cancer treatment. If you’ve had lymph nodes removed from your armpit during breast cancer treatment, you have a higher risk of developing lymphedema in your hands months or years after treatment. This is known as secondary lymphedema. You can also be born with primary lymphedema, though it’s more common to have it in your legs than your arms. Other symptoms of lymphedema include: swelling and aching in the arm or hand a heavy feeling in the arm numbness in the arm or hand skin feels tight or taut on the arm jewelry seems to be too tight decreased ability to flex or move your arm, hand, or wrist While there’s no cure for lymphedema, lymphatic drainage massage can help to reduce swelling and prevent fluid from building up. 5. Preeclampsia Preeclampsia is a condition where blood pressure rises and causes other organ dysfunction. It is common after 20 weeks gestation, but can sometimes occur earlier in pregnancy or even postpartum. This is a serious condition that can be life threatening. A certain amount of swelling is expected during pregnancy, especially in your hands and feet. However, a sudden increase in blood pressure due to preeclampsia can cause fluid retention and rapid weight gain. If you’re pregnant and experience any of the following symptoms with swollen hands, contact your doctor immediately: abdominal pain severe headaches seeing spots a change in reflexes urinating less or not at all blood in the urine dizziness excessive vomiting and nausea 6. Psoriatic arthritis Psoriatic arthritis is a type of arthritis that affects people who have psoriasis. Psoriasis is a skin condition marked by red patches of scaly skin. Most people are diagnosed with psoriasis first, but it’s possible for arthritis symptoms to begin before skin symptoms appear. Psoriatic arthritis can affect any part of your body. It often tends to affect your fingers, toes, feet, and lower back. Your fingers, in particular, can become extremely swollen and “sausage-like.” You might also notice swelling in your fingers before any signs of joint pain. Other symptoms of psoriatic arthritis include: joints that are painful and swollen joints that are warm to the touch pain in the back of your heel or sole of your foot lower back pain There’s no cure for psoriatic arthritis. Treatment focuses on managing pain and inflammation, usually through nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or steroid injections. 7. Angioedema Angioedema is caused by an allergic reaction to something you came in contact with. During an allergic reaction, histamine and other chemicals are released into your bloodstream. This can cause sudden swelling underneath your skin, either with or without hives. It usually affects your lips and eyes, but can also show up in your hands, feet, and throat. Angioedema is very similar to hives, but it happens just beneath your skin’s surface. Other symptoms include: large, thick, firm welts swelling and redness pain or warmth in the affected areas swelling in the lining of the eye Angioedema usually goes away on its own. Its symptoms can also be treated with oral antihistamines. The bottom line Swollen hands can be uncomfortable, but they’re usually nothing to worry about. Try making a few lifestyle changes and see if that helps. If you’re pregnant or have had lymph nodes previously removed, talk to your doctor. You may have preeclampsia or lymphedema  

@jaimiejay..I workout 6 days a week. I did not mention that about a week b4 swelling I noticed I was having trouble grasping weights at gym n when I did bicep curls my elbow would hurt. Just thought it was typical gym type pains..the swelling happened. Nothing happened at gym to cause this..ie hitting myself with weights etc. Your post was extremely helpful. Thx! 

Now Im thinking tendonitis... Look that up Diane. Now that I here what your saying... Diablo would know more about that than I do because he does the weight training. I had a friend get tendonitis in his less prominent arm. Required surgery. I dont do heavy workouts anymore, just mowing the lawn because I can't afford any more injuries either. I hope you find out why... Let us know too. 

I saw you have a sling but of course I can’t see your arm. You have already had plenty of advice here, but I’m going to mention a couple of things. #1. How soon is your DR. . Appt. and what kind of doctor. #2. Did the urgent care doc. Evaluate your pulse on that arm. #3. Did the urgent care doc evaluate the capillary refill on that arm. That is where they press down on pads of fingers and see how quickly the blood and color return. 4# did he suggest an ultrasound for blood flow. 5#. Is the swelling stable, Getting worse or getting better? 6# do you have normal sensation in your fingers or numbness. 7# Do you have pain. 8# is your hand a normal color, pale or reddened a bit. When you rest in a chair with your arm elevated as much as possible, does the swelling subside a bit. Sometime problems like this are better dealt with by an ER where they have access to ultrasound, CT and MRI. FYI to anyone reading this. MRI and CT are two different types of imagine. They each have their own indications. Just because your doc doesn’t order a test that someone mentions does not necessarily mean he is cheap or doesn’t know what he is doing, it may also just indicate that your particular issue may not require That type of imaging. 

@Kenna Morten They didnt do much of what you posted. They took my blood pressure but in right arm because of swelling. Im going to mention alot of this info to my reg dr. Also I did not mention that I have a pace maker but just did a pet scan and ultra sound a few weeks ago n cardiologist was very pleased. No blockage n heart is strong.  

Glad you’re seeing a Dr and I second calling tomorrow to see if you can move it up. And red streaks moving up your arm is an ER emergency for sure. 👩‍⚕️ 

Gout he s a lot of attention on FS because avoiding red meats and alcohol can treat/reverse it. But it’s important to get a diagnosis from a qualified medical provider to make sure you’re not skipping a steak to treat, say, a wrist fracture. 🥩 

Diana1234— ok, with that piece of info about a pacemaker call your CARDIOLOGIST as soon as you can (like today) and make sure he has this info!!!! Speak to him if possible, don’t just leave it with a secretary. Did the urgent care do a chest X-ray? You would be justified going to the ER for this. This issue could be related to the pacer.