Return of the bump.

So my freaky, fluid-filled swollen wrist bump has returned. Gross!! Thankfully, it has kind of done a half-ass job of showing up...nothing like the lumpy, squishy alien-incubating freak show that was the back of my hand a month ago. I don't have to wrap it up in an ace bandage and it's not really that entertaining to look at. But still, it's just enough to be uncomfortable.

There are several possible explanations for this unwelcome come back show. Listed in order of my preference:

a) I have rheumatoid arthritis (or some variation thereof) and diet has nothing to do with my symptoms at all leaving me doomed for a future of immunosuppresants and joint erosion.

b) I have rheumatoid arthritis (or some variation thereof) and diet DOES have an effect on my symptoms but I have somehow messed up the diet or not done it properly and will never know why it didn't work but am doomed to a future...etc.

c) I have some completely different malady, like a freaky recurring virus, or chronic infection, or some mysterious metabolic disorder which neither I nor my doctor has thought of or tested for yet and which will continue to go undiagnosed until I suffer from irreversible liver damage, or something.

d) I have rheumatoid arthritis (or some variation thereof) and diet is the ultimate cause of my symptoms and my unfortunately uncomfortable wrist is a result of one of the foods I tested in the 24 hours before my wrist got swollen and so if I eliminate those foods going forward I'll feel fine again.

e) I have some completely different and easily curable malady that will show up on the lab results I expect to get back tomorrow.

So, given those options, I looked at what I ate yesterday and the day before, and I am re-eliminating tomatoes (plants in the nightshade family cause problems for some arthritis patients) and rice (because it's not all that healthy anyway and I ate it yesterday) and beef (bummer). I rarely eat avocados anyway, so I'm not worrying about that one.

To be honest, I'm annoyed. This could be a complete waste of my time and a total exercise in futility. I get that. But if I quit now, I'll never know. And regardless of whatever theories I read about RA's etiology, eating less processed foods and more fruits and vegetables is hardly going to make me any worse, and might make the non-joint parts of me healthier anyway.

Soy was supposed to be today's big test, as it is a more common allergen than, say, the Boston lettuce I had for lunch. But I'm putting it off until tomorrow and hoping my wrist will be better then. If I have some reaction to soy I don't want it to be masked by my sore wrist. I guess if I feel fine tomorrow, and then have my edamame for dinner and my wrist swells up again, I'll count out soy. This is kind of an incredible hassle, and I really and truly would love for my doctor to call tomorrow and say, "Hey! Looks like you have parvovirus!" Problem solved. Unlikely maybe, but would be nice.