Rheumatoid Arthritis Treatment Then and Now
I talk a lot about the revolutionary changes in RA treatment. This week on HealthCentral, I went into some more depth about how, specifically, RA treatment has changed: “Receiving a diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) used to mean an inevitable deterioration into joint damage, deformity and disability. Receiving an RA diagnosis now means a much…
A Perfect Start to Summer
Summer officially arrived this past weekend and for me, that was reason enough to scuttle all work and goof off intensely for three days. I can highly recommend it. The adventure started on Friday, when I wandered down to the Redpath Waterfront Festival to check out the Dock Dogs competition. These dogs are incredible and…
True Catastrophizing
You know how I feel about catastrophizing (here, here and here). It’s that terrible term used to belittle the concerns of people with chronic illness and chronic pain. When you’re in the middle of an intense flare, it’s a fairly normal response to wonder if it’ll ever end, yet medical professionals define it as viewing…
Inspiration Porn, Stigma and the Way Out
Imagine a photo of a child in a wheelchair with a basketball, someone running on carbon fiber prosthetic legs or a person with RA deformities knitting. Across the bottom of the photo is emblazoned this text: “your excuse is invalid.” That’s inspiration porn. Porn involves the objectification of one group of people for the benefit…
Walking the Walk
We did it! The Your Life with RA team raised over $2,300 for our 5K in the Walk to Fight Arthritis, exceeding our goal by $700. Not bad for our first time out! We all got up at the crack of dawn Sunday and headed to the Evergreen Brick Works. It’s a beautiful green space in the middle of…
The Freedom to Eat
I have a variety of food allergies, some of which require me carrying an EpiPen in case I have an anaphylactic reaction. And it’s had a profound impact on my socializing. I don’t eat out much anymore. There are no ironclad guarantees in a restaurant. They’ll try their best, but until someone opens a nut…
Show Us What Your Hands Can Do!
A Show Us Your Hands! Photo Campaign Building hope, one hand at a time #showusyourhands Help Show Us Your Hands! inspire and unite the inflammatory arthritis community and qualify to win a copy of Your Life with Rheumatoid Arthritis: Tools for Managing Treatment, Side Effects and Pain by Lene Andersen! We need your help! At…