Question about arthritis treatment

My partner has rheumatoid arthritis, and has been taking prednisone for 2 years, and now a doctor tells him he should be taking methotrexate, and we are confused as to what to do. We do believe in natural medicine, but we seem to be keep taking more steps toward pharmacueticals because of the pain relief and faster acting medicinals. Has anyone taken this chemotherapy drug for arthritis. What can you tell me about it and its side effect and efficiency ???
We are very confused and need some advice.

 

I have RA. My doctor wouldn't give me methotrexate because he didn't like the side effects it can had, so he prescribed plaquenil. It seems to have arrested the RA for the most part, and as far as side effects I can't tell I've taken it, nor did it affect the results of any lab tests I've had.

If he's in a lot of pain, a heavy dose of Celebrex helps, but it has its dangers, too. Probably the most helpful thing I take is a heavy dose of Chondroitin/Glucosamine. Some doctors say it doesn't work, but I can tell when I stop taking it, I've done that several times to see if it was helping. I try to remember that some of the whiz-bang pharmaceuticals the doctor had me try didn't work and he had to try something different. If he goes the chemo drug route, don't miss any doctor's appointments especially for lab work, chemo drugs can mess up your red/white blood cell count pretty fast. That can be fixed, if you catch it early. Good luck, I hope he gets better soon!

 

My mom has RA. She took lots of medication for a long time, but the past year or so, she has really cut back. She does take a very small dose of predisone and plaquenil, and the occaisional pain pill, but she has cut out most everything else. She thinks her daily fish oil helps tremendously.
About 5 or 6 years ago, a doctor put her on methotrexate and she had a very bad reaction. She ended up in the hospital and was sick for a very long time.

 

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Another thing the doctor can do for your partner if he's/she's having a flareup in just a few joints is a combination anesthetic/steroid injection right into the joint. My doc loads the lidocaine in the syringe last and feeds it as the needle goes in, so even if it is a big scary needle it only hurts for a few seconds before the lidocaine numbs the site. I get a huge amount of relief in a few minutes from the painkiller, and then the steriod starts helping and that lasts for 2-3 months. The procedure looks and sounds awful the first time, but I'm glad to go back when I need it.