I have a question. I am having very bad pain in my hands and feet. It is much worse in the morning and after resting. when I get up in the morning it feels like my fingers are swollen and tight and hard to bend. The pain is in the joints and they thumbs which are the worse. I had one blood test and they said I don't have RA. I am convinced it has to be some kind of arthritis. The question is could I ask my doctor for a dose pack of steroids and see if that helps my pain. and if it does help wouldn't that prove that it is some kind of arthritis. I don't know that why I am asking for help. Thanks

Blood tests don't always inform us of much.. Are you seeing a GP or a Rheumatologist, because the Rheumy should be able to give you a little more insight than just negative for RA..I have Psoriatic Arthritis which does not show up in tests.. it is a clinical diagnosis, so you may need to see a few different Dr.'s and sometimes, since a lot of the arthritis-es have overlapping symptoms, it can be hard to say which one you have. Find a Dr you trust and they should give you all the recommendations/options for pain management. Do you have any other symptoms you can share? Stiff pain in the fingers/knuckles, wrists, elbows, back, knees, ankles, feet, toes... seem to be a common complaint amongst a lot of us here as well many other symptoms, so let us know if you are experiencing anything else and maybe we can give you more input.
Take care