Your Rheumatoid Arthritis Window of Opportunity Is Only 8 Months—Here’s Why

Facing Fear About Biologics 0:00

You are sitting in the doctor's office. The doctor looks at you and says it's time to start a biologic. Immediately your heart races. You go home, you open Google and within five minutes you are terrified. you see worse like immune suppression, infections and cancer. And you think Maybe my joint pain is not that bad enough. Maybe I can just fix this with diet. I hear this every single day. But today, I am going to ask you to do one thing. Do not let fear make your medical decisions. Use biologics to take your life back from rheumatoid arthritis.

Biologic Safety and Real-World Data 0:58

If you are new to the channel, we are here at RoomDoc to help you learn about rheumatoid arthritis. And if you like our video, please subscribe to our channel and don't forget the gifts in our Channel that includes a free copy of the guide as well as the free recipe of a smoothie that you use to fight against rheuma arthritis now the reason number one the safety data will shock you when you read the warning level on biologic it lists every terrible thing that has ever happened to anyone it is terrifying but let me show you what does the real world data show in a massive six-year study of patients taking biologics up to 86 percent of the patient had zero side effects none and yes You might get a mild cold or some redness where you inject the medication.

But the scary stuff you read about online, it is incredibly rare. The vast majority of the people take this medication for years and do perfectly fine. Now, let me tell you a story of one of our patients. She came to me with three years history of early rheumatoid arthritis.

Why Delaying Treatment Causes Damage 2:12

Her hands were hurting. she was terrified of medication and she said, I want to try natural remedies first. I begged her not to wait, but she refused the biologics. Two years later, she came back to me. The pain was much worse. But more importantly, the cartilage in her wrist was gone. Our fingers had started to bend. There were deformities in our hand and that damage she has is permanent. Biologics cannot fix joints that are already destroyed. They can only protect what you still have. Waiting is the biggest risk you can take with rheumatoid arthritis.

Now let me go through the reason number three, the precision medicine, not a sledgehammer. A lot of people think biologists wipe out your entire immune system, but that is not true. Think of your immune system like a massive army. When you have RA, one specific squad in that army has gone a role and is attacking your joints. Traditional older medications like methotrexate were like dropping a bomb in the whole army, biologics are like sending a sniper,

How Biologics Target RA Precisely 3:34

they target only one row squad. The rest of your immune system stays intact and keeps fighting off regular germs and this is a good example of precision medicine. Now the reason number four why you should say yes to biologic is I call the eight month window of opportunity. You might think I will just wait a year and see how I feel with rheumatoid arthritis. But science tells us that that's a bad idea. We call this a window of opportunities. Studies show that if you delay the right treatment by just eight to nine months, your risk of permanent joint damage is skyrocketing.

If you hit the disease hard and early with biologic, you can actually stop the damage before it even starts. you do not get the time back. Now, all of you rheumatoid arthritis warrior, please stay with me until the end of the video so that you don't miss the important reason why you should say yes to biologics to control your rheuma to arthritis.

The Risks of Untreated Rheumatoid Arthritis 4:37

And I also have a story of one of my patients whose life was changed by the biologic. The reason number five. The disease is worse than the drug. We spend so much time worrying about the side effects of the medication, but we forget to worry about side-effects of untreated rheumatoid arthritis. If you let rheumiated arthritis go wild, it does not just hurt your joints, It causes severe disability. It attacks your lungs. it causes chronic crossing fatigue. The disease itself is far more dangerous than the medication used to treat rheumatoid arthritis.

You are choosing between a rare risk of medication side effects and a 100% guaranteed risk for joint damage if you do nothing. Did you know that having rheumatoid arthritis doubles your risk of having heart attack? The inflammation in your joints is the same inflammation that damages your blood vessels. Here is the amazing news. When you take a biologic to calm the inflammation in your joints, you are also calming the inflammation in the heart.

Heart Protection and Better Outcomes 5:56

Studies show that patients on biologics have a significant lower risk of heart attack and strokes. The medication does not just save your hands, they save you life and your heart too. Reason number seven. Let's use the example of Mark, one of our patients. who returned to golf course after taking the biologic. Mark was 55 who loved golf. When his RA flared up, he could not even hold a golf club. He was miserable and depressed. he was scared of the injections. but he was more scared of losing his passion, his golf.

Then he started a biologic. He came back to me 6 weeks later. he walked into my office smiling. The swelling on his hand were gone, the stiffness was gone and he played 18 holes that weekend. And he told me, I wish I had not wasted six months being afraid of these biologics.

Getting Back to Normal Activities 6:54

Reason number eight. The fatigue finally lifts. When you have rheumatoid arthritis, a joint is awful. But my patients tell me the fatigue is even worse. It is that bone deep exhaustion that sleep doesn't fix. That fatigue is caused by the chemicals your immune system is putting out. We call that cytokines. When a biologic block those chemicals, the pain stops, but the brain fog and the exhaustion also lifts. Patients tell me it feels like waking up from a long, bad dream. You get your energy back.

The reason number nine, you are closely monitor on biologics. You are never alone when you start a biologic. We, as rheumatologists, don't just give you a prescription and say, good luck, we take your blood, your liver, and your immune cells. If there is even a tiny hint of a problem, you see it in the blood test long before you ever feel sick.

Fatigue Relief and Ongoing Monitoring 7:57

If that happens, we can stop the medication or adjust the dose safely. You are surrounded by a safety net that protects you from those side effects. And the last reason, reason number 10, the life you are missing. The biggest risk of saying no to a biologic is the life you are missing out on while you're in pain due to rheumatoid arthritis. It is trips you do not take because you cannot walk through the airport. Grandkids you don't pick up because your wrist hurts. It is the morning you spend crying in the bed because you are in a lot of pain and stiffness.

You do not have to live that way. The science is here, the medications work, and the biologic help fix those problems. Fear is a terrible reason to stay in pain.

Life Beyond RA and Taking Action 8:55

So let me give you your one action today. Talk to your rheumatologist. tell them you are ready to explore biologic ask them which one is right for you do not let fear steal your future and take your life back by using those biologics to control your rheumatoid arthritis if this video helped you please like and subscribe to our channel share this with someone who is scared of these medications the biologists and i'll see in the next video bye bye