Has anyone else been diagnosed with this "unspecified inflammatory spondyloarthropathy"? Anyone else have thoughts about this? About my journey?
Greetings! First of all, welcome! I'm sorry that your health issues have brought you to us, but hopefully the information and experiences shared on this forum will be as helpful to you as it was to me.
I have a similar diagnosis - undifferentiated spondyloarthopathy. Basically, I had all the hallmark symptoms of AS but my x-rays and MRI were clean so I couldn't receive the official ankylosing spondylitis diagnosis. My inflammation markers were elevated, but not as crazy high as I've seen in many of the cases here. I was however, pretty much a stone's throw away from being disabled. In all likelihood, I believe I was in the early stages for ankylosing spondylitis and had I not been able to get my inflammation under control, would have suffered the fate that many people here have.
The name of the game is controlling the inflammation. There lots of different ways to do this, so you'll just have to find something that works for you, and is a path you want to go down.
As for me, at the time of diagnosis, my rheumy prescribed me some NSAIDs to manage the inflammation. I told him that I had tried NSAIDs and they didn't help. That was all he could offer me at the time so I felt I had to try different approaches. Without getting into a long drawn out story about everything I tried, I can say that I am eternally grateful for discovering the NSD section on this forum. At the end of the day, a very strict diet was able to get me back to being pain-free / asymptomatic. I am not cured because even 6 years later, if I slip on the diet, the symptoms start creeping back.
The collected experience and wisdom on these forums can be truly helpful. You just have to sift through and figure out what's right for you. My only suggestion is to post your experiences and don't be afraid to ask questions. The community benefits from having people share their experiences and everyone chiming in.
Managing this illness is a war, not a battle. So be prepared to slog it out. Good luck!
