Access/No Access: The Quest for an Accessible Hotel Room
I had to be out of my apartment for week while my landlord installed new flooring to replace the one that had been destroyed in a flood. But first, I decided to check out a few accessible rooms in hotels near my neighbourhood to see which would best fit my needs. Starting with a surprise…
How to Enjoy the Holidays as a Mother with Chronic Illness
I was really excited when Mariah Leach approached me to write an article for her new wonderful site Mamas Facing Forward. It’s an amazing resource by a woman with a mother with chronic illness for other mothers with chronic illness (for those who want to have children). Moms are the ones who make the…
How Massage Can Help Rheumatoid Arthritis
Keeping rheumatoid arthritis pain under control requires a toolbox of techniques. This can include both allopathic (Western) approaches, as well as alternative treatments. One of these is massage. In my new slideshow for HealthCentral, I took a look at how massage can help RA: “Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a systemic illness that affects many parts…
A Reminder of Hope
Sometimes, living with a chronic illness can seem neverending. You long for times when you could do more, and once you’ve been in the darkness for a while, it becomes difficult to comprehend that things could get better. It’s also incredibly difficult to explain to your loved ones. Hope for Tomorrow card by TheSeatedView …
Eating out with Food Allergies: Tasting Menu at George Restaurant
Is it possible to try a tasting menu when you have a list of food allergies as long as your arm? That was the challenge we presented to George Restaurant in Toronto during our vacation. They went for it and this is the story. Amuse bouche When The Boy and I first started dating, we…
A Streetcar Named Freedom
Ask any person with a disability about the main challenges to living their life and almost all will talk about transportation (and, of course, housing). In Toronto, we have WheelTrans, the parallel transit system for people with disabilities, some accessible regular buses, some accessible subway stations, and now, new and accessible street cars. I have…
Rheumatoid Arthritis Flare Triggers
Most people have a fairly good sense of how they’ll feel tomorrow, which enables them to make plans and organize their days. When you have rheumatoid arthritis, this is not the case — a flare of symptoms may pop up out of nowhere and sideswipe your life. Knowing what may trigger a flare can give…
New Tool Offers Side-by-Side Comparison of RA Medications
Finding the right rheumatoid arthritis medication for you, one that has benefits, with the tall pro level of side effects, is a trial and error process. Wouldn’t it be great if we had a tool that can tell us what life on a particular medication would be like? I recently interviewed a rheumatologist who is…
A Hotel That Heals: Le Germain Maple Leaf Square Review
The first hint that we weren’t in real life anymore was the name of the toilet. OK, so I’m sure it was the name of the brand of this kind of toilet (total? Really?), but it set the tone. I got kicked out of house and home the last week while a big part of…
My Holiday Gift to You
I want to help you enjoy the holidays this year. Those words are usually the start of a sales pitch, but not today. Read on for your gift. It’s the Season of Stress. Christmas everything. Carols, trees, decorations, Santa hats and it’s just so much. Don’t get me wrong — the holidays are lovely, but…
Masking RA: How to Stop Pretending We’re Fine
Do you pretend to be better than you are? Do you hide your pain, your fatigue, maybe you illness itself? In my new article for HealthCentral, I write about the damage pretending with do to us and our relationships and share tips for taking off the mask: “We all do it — pretend that everything…
Facebook Live: Guilt and Chronic Illness
So many of us feel so much guilt. As you know, I wrote a post about guilt — particularly writer guilt — a little while ago, but I couldn’t get it out of my head. So I took at the Facebook. In this month’s #AskLene, we talked about guilt, chronic illness, and how to let…