RA and COVID-19: Can We Go Back to Normal?
In the past week, some countries have started to relax COVID-19 restrictions and there is increasing talk about loosening things up. They call it deconfinement, which sounds oddly benign, like a Victorian lady starting to visit acquaintances for tea again after having produced the spare to the heir. But it’s not benign. I have rheumatoid…
My Name is Lene, and I’m at High Risk for COVID-19
My rheumatoid arthritis puts me in danger of developing serious complications from COVID-19. It’s a really scary place to be. In my new column for HealthCentral, I talk about what it’s like and! interview the amazing Molly Schreiber, who co-founded the #HighRiskCOVID19 campaign that’s making a real difference: “Just about the only comforting news we…
COVID-19 and RA: What to Pack in Your Hospital Go-Bag
Living in the middle of a pandemic while being high risk is the most scared many of us have ever been. When you have rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and are taking an immunosuppressant medication, there is a double whammy of risk. We have to consider what might happen if we need to go to the hospital…
Denied: Disability and Life-Saving Treatment in the COVID-19 Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic is a scary time for all. When you have a disability, it’s downright terrifying to know that your life is a risk, not just from the virus, but also from the very real potential of being excluded from lifesaving measures. The devaluation of our lives that used to be covered with a…
I Tried Light Therapy for Seasonal Affective Disorder
It arrived like clockwork the second week of February. I’ve had Seasonal Affective Disorder for as long as I can remember, as do several other people in my family. This year’s was a humdinger. I started isolating (remember this was before COVID-19), the world lost its colours, I got really sad, and writing became extremely…
Easy Black Bean Stew
I love an easy and healthy pantry meal. Something that can be quickly put together with minimal effort and price, maximum flavour and which will give me enough food for several meals. By nature, pantry meals are often vegetarian/vegan and so it is with this black bean stew. The dish is an adaptation of a…
Answered: Your Questions About Chronic Illness and COVID-19
Updated March 17, 2020 If you are a member of a vulnerable population, what you need to do and what you need to worry about in relation coronavirus and COVID-19 (the illness you get from coronavirus) may be entirely different than what’s general available. Finding the answers isn’t always easy. I asked my readers to…
Boundaries Start with U: Protecting Your Health with RA
It was my nap that taught me about boundaries and my role in maintaining them. Years ago, my rheumatoid arthritis (RA) progressed to the point that I needed a daily rest to manage fatigue and pain. And that’s when I banged hard up against other people’s preconceptions. “It must be wonderful to have a nap…
Chronic Illness Doesn’t Mean You Don’t Contribute
I can’t work, so I feel like a deadweight in my marriage. We used to do active things together and now we can’t. I worry that it’ll end our relationship. I see these comments all the time as I talk to others in the chronic illness community. When you can no longer do everything you…
What Accepting Your RA Really Means
It took me a long time to know that acceptance isn’t something you arrive at and stay there forever more. It’s something you work on, all the time. In my new column for HealthCentral, I talk about how I do that: “Let’s say you found an old lamp at a flea market and it had…
Easy Soup Recipes
Soup. It warms you inside and out on cold days and comforts when you need a hug. But when you have a chronic illness, cooking can be difficult. I asked the community on my Facebook page to share their favourite easy soup recipes for this post. I’ll share mine at the end, too. Garbage Soup…
9 Quotes That Inspire Me When the Struggle Gets Too Real
We all have when you wake up to discover that everything has chosen this exact moment to fall apart: your chronic illness has flared, your pain is out of control, the cat puked in your shoes, and brain fog is making it impossible to think. For instance. And sometimes, we have several days like that…