Announcing #ChronicJourneys: My New Talk Show
Getting to know others and hearing their stories is one of my favourite things, ever. There are so many fascinating people who have found ways to live with and around rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and other types of chronic illness and I want to talk to all of them! About how they manage their condition, but…
Get Motivated to Do Just About Anything (With RA or Not)
Living with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) can make it really hard to get anything done. In my new Made with RA column for HealthCentral, I talk about motivation and how to find it. “I’m probably not alone in being fascinated with how the “normals” have dealt with COVID-19 isolation (similar in so many ways to life…
Managing RA (or Any Chronic Illness) Is a Full-Time Job
No one ever tells you just how much work it is to have a chronic illness. Just how many roles and tasks does it include? I tell all in my new Made with RA column on HealthCentral: “I am exhausted. My doctors would tell me this is due to the stress of living with a…
Is it OK to Dump Someone Because of Their Medical Condition? Why the New York Times Got It Wrong (and It’s Not What You Think)
“I just can’t handle it.” I’d bet the majority of people who have a chronic illness or disability have had that conversation when dating. That is, if you’re lucky. There are also the infinite number of times when you’re just ghosted — the person just disappears as if exorcised from your life. Earlier this week,…
Why Does It Take So Long To Get A Diagnosis Of RA?
One of the biggest struggles to effectively treat rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is the delay in diagnosis. In the very recent past, just 20 years ago, the time from the appearance of first symptoms to diagnosis range from a few months to more than 10 years. Thankfully, that has improved more, although the average is still…
You Can Run a Small Business With RA
Got dreams? You can get there with RA. I’ve been working for myself for well over a decade now and in many ways, being self-employed is the ideal job when you have RA and other types of chronic illnesses. In my new Made with RA column for HealthCentral, I share my experience and tips for…
Are intensive care triage protocols harming the disabled?
Are ICU triage protocols harming the disabled during the COVID-19 pandemic? This is a very important issue, one I’ve posted about before, as well as appeared on the TVO #onpoli podcast. And now, I’m taking it one step further through collaboration with the amazing Laurie Proulx and Emily Sirotich on an opinion piece for the BMJ. …
Two Kinds of RA Pain and How to Cope
Pain is often one of the first symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and may continue to play a leading role in your life with this condition. When you have RA, there are two general causes of pain: one is active RA inflammation and the other RA damage. I’ll take a look at both, as well…
When RA Hits Your Jaw: The Facts and Tips to Cope
Did you know that headaches, toothaches, and pain around the neck and shoulders could mean that rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is affecting your jaw? For some of you reading this, this could be the first time you heard that RA can affect your jaw. Let’s cover that first — yes, it can, just like all the…
How Someone Who Can’t Have Children Feels About Mother’s Day
Mother’s Day is almost here and even in a pandemic, we’ll find way to celebrate. but what about the women who aren’t mothers? In my new column for HealthCentral, I share my story of how rheumatoid arthritis blocked my dreams of being a mother (and what I’m doing instead): “Somewhere in a parallel reality, I…
Dear Loved Ones: This Is What RA Feels Like
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is complicated and difficult. It is much more than painful joints and affects every aspect of your life. How do you make family friends and… Well, everyone understand what it’s like to live with RA? My new column for HealthCentral is a letter in which I, on behalf of the community, try…
Deciding who lives and who dies – the #onpoli podcast
As someone who lives with multiple chronic illnesses and disability, news about triage protocols excluding people like me is both worrisome and infuriating. I recently appeared on the TV Ontario #onpoli podcast to talk about it. Listen to the episode on deciding who lives and who dies on TVO.