Coping with RA Flares: A Rheumatologist’s Tips to Feel Better

If you have rheumatoid arthritis, you probably know that RA flare-ups tend to have a mind of their own. “The immune system is very mysterious,” says Ashira Blazer, MD, a rheumatologist at NYU Langone Medical Center. “A person can have a flare without any sort of trigger, but there are certain things that trigger flares.”

A flare is a period of increased RA activity (inflammation) or worsening rheumatoid arthritis symptoms. “An RA flare feels a lot like the first diagnosis of RA,” says Dr. Blazer. “So patients start to develop pain swelling, stiffness — especially in the morning — and it can last hours, maybe even all day.” Learn more in Rheumatoid Arthritis: Your GoodRx Guide.

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Brittany Doohan

Brittany Doohan was the Content Director at HealthiNation and is currently the Editorial Director at Medscape. Through her work with Medscape, she won a Silver Telly Award in May 2022 for "Sleepless Nation: A Public Health Epidemic — Episode 2: A Decade Without a Diagnosis." She has worked in health journalism and video production for more than 8 years, and loves the challenge of explaining complex topics in an easy-to-understand and creative way.

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Mandy Armitage, MD

Mandy Armitage, MD, has combined clinical medicine with her passion for education and content development for many years. She served as medical director for the health technology companies HealthLoop (now Get Well) and Doximity.

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