I describe the pain in my toes as if they had been put in a pencil sharpener and all the flesh had been ground off down into the bone. I also ask them if they remember playing out in the snow when they were little and your feet were completely frozen inside your wet boots and the burning pain you had when you took your boots off. I describe pain in my hand knuckles as bee stings.

I just wish I could get people to understand why you can't sleep at night and the fatigue from the "pain drain."

I change how I describe my pain dependent on who I'm talking to.

I recently tried to explain to my boyfriend that when my feet are too swollen to walk, it's because they "feel like plastic bags full of hot soup". He didn't really get where I was coming from with that one.

I've also told my father recently that when I flare in my knees and shoulders, it feels like someone pulled a thousand needles out of a fire, took my kneecap/arm off, shoved the needles in there, and then reattached my limbs.

The general achey-ness I describe to most people as having a nasty flu but no fever/sneezing/coughing (or like I got hit by a bus a week ago but didn't break anything).

My fingers often feel like I need to pop my knuckles, but when I try, they don't move and it's just extremely painful.

Sometimes I'm like maybe I should record myself trying to get up and go to the bathroom just so they can see and hear the struggle lol! It would sound like "Oh Lord ugh, OH dear God ugh, help me Jesus, ugh...

What is the pain clinic doing for you. My RA said the same thing. He gave me one RX of Norco 7.5 and said he would not continue to give them to me. That he would send me to a pain clinic.