A woman with an autoimmune disease has revealed all the symptoms she missed in a bid to warn others.
Nicky, from Plymouth, said she has just been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis by doctors.
This type of arthritis is a long-term condition that causes pain, swelling and stiffness in the joints and usually affects the hands, feet and wrists.
She said she had many symptoms that she thought were normal but were actually a result of her medical condition.
But she got a shock a couple of months ago when she could not get out of bed one day and said that her ‘life has changed’.
Nicky spoke about the first sign she ignored and said: ‘For the last couple of years I’d wake up in pain and my whole body would hurt, but it would only last for 30 seconds maybe, maximum a minute.
‘And then you forget… I thought that was normal.’
The beautician also said she felt very achy while sitting down after working for the day, but she just put this down to having a busy job.
Nicky (pictured), from Plymouth, said she has just been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis by doctors
She added: ‘But then it started when I wasn’t working and I haven’t done anything and when I say aching, I mean [it felt] like I had ran a marathon.’
Nicky said that she has also not been able to control her body heat for ‘many years’, adding that she could not sit in the sun for long periods of time.
She said: ‘It could be winter but I would be boiling hot and sweating. I can’t sit in the sun [as] I’d get rashes and I feel like I’m cooking from the inside out. I thought that was normal.’
Nicky said that she has also experienced joint pain in her hands over the years, but she thought that this was because she is a hairdresser.
‘I used to put that down to my job and thought that was normal,’ she added.
She’s also had problems sleeping and said that she has not been able to go for a kip for many years.
She said: ‘I just couldn’t function, fatigue, tired constantly, again, I thought that was normal. I work a busy, busy job, I run a salon and I’ve got my own business so I just put it down to that.’
Nicky urged anyone who is experiencing these symptoms to get themselves checked out, as it could be an underlying health issue.
Nicky said that she has also experienced joint pain in her hands over the years, but she thought that this was because she is a hairdresser
The clip racked up more than 560,000 views on TikTok and Nicky got thousands of comments from people sharing their thoughts
The clip racked up more than 560,000 views on TikTok and Nicky got thousands of comments from people sharing their thoughts.
One wrote: ‘I have psoriatic arthritis, I’m on so much medication… it’s so hard,’ to which Nicky responded: ‘I feel you.’
Another penned: ‘I was diagnosed with RA as well but two years later they changed the diagnosis to Psoriatic arthritis. I only have psoriasis on my nails so it confused them. The pain was as you say, debilitating.’
A third said: ‘I was first told I had fibymalgia then menopause and then rheumatoid arthritis, I think it’s a bit of them all to be honest.’
A fourth commented: ‘I have the same symptoms as you. But I’ve been diagnosed with Fibromyalgia. I’ve got so bad I had to give up my job.’
