The Seated View

When you live with a chronic illness,difficult times are unavoidable. And it can feel as if you are walking through the valley of if not death, then certainly  a very dark and dingy place. What's it like and how do you cope? That's the subject of my new article on HealthCentral : "Living with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) isn’t fun. If life is a dance on roses, when you have RA it can feel like a dance (OK, more like a limp) on thorns. And it can be really difficult to not get pulled under by the riptide of pain, fatigue, and waking up every day feeling awful. Approximately 30 percent of people who have this condition experience depression, about a third of those so severely that they become suicidal . I’d wager that even those who haven’t experienced a clinical depression know what it’s like to feel dejected. You don’t have to be in a severe flare to feel the encroaching bony fingers of hopelessness picking away at your composure. I had to stop t...

There are days where you hardly notice you have a chronic illness or disability. You move through your day effortlessly a, whatever accommodations you’ve made are by now second nature and hence unnoticeable. Wherever you go, people are helpful, removing barriers to make sure you are included Last Saturday was the opposite of one such day. Insurance Battles I’d submitted a claim to my private insurance company for hospital cash for last year’s medical adventure. Trying to limit the amount of back and forth, I first checked what supporting documentation was needed. Oh, the agent said, just a letter from the hospital confirming admission and discharge date. I got this ($30 fee) and sent it in. Nope, not enough. They also wanted to know how many days I’s spent in a private or semiprivate room (they don’t pay for this). New letter, another $30. No again. Now they wanted a letter from my doctor with the diagnosis that led to the admission. To ensure (I assume) i...

The night before I dreamed that I was late to this first-ever Facebook Live event that I hosted on Friday. I’d gotten held up by the tornado, but somehow managed to get there anyway. Then the lights went out as a massive natural disaster commenced. I couldn’t find my notes, so I talked for a good 90 minutes, rather than the 10 minutes I was supposed to. Eventually, they took the phone away from me rather forcefully. The reality  was a somewhat similar, without the tornado. There were some technical challenges and some RA-related challenges, as well as rampant idiocy challenges (that latter one was me), but for a first time, it was alright. I promise to do better next time! Now I just need a better tripod....

It is fairly well known that rheumatoid arthritis (RA) affects women more often than men, but are there other gender differences in the condition ? My new slideshow for HealthCentral looks at differences and possible causes for this: "There are many individual differences in how people experience rheumatoid arthritis (RA). It is possible to generalize some of these differences, especially based on gender. Many studies include that gender as a variable, and this means that it is possible to identify the differences between men and women and how they are affected by RA." See the rest of the slideshow on gender differences in RA on HealthCentral.   

“Is this worth $5 of happiness?” This is a question my friend and sister-in-law Janet asks herself when tempted to purchase something slightly frivolous. It’s a great way to find out if you’re in the grip of an impulse that will evaporate the minute you leave the store, or whether you will actually be happy you bought this the silly little thing (or not-so-silly — good chocolate could qualify, as well). Today I’m asking you for five dollars. It can be the five dollars you didn’t spend on a trashy magazine or neon-coloured bandana. Or it can be the five dollars you spend on a coffee and a muffin, or the tips for the delivery guy. There’s nothing wrong with spending your money on any one of those things, but today - and just today - I’m going to ask that you spend them on research and support programs for people with arthritis.   On June 4, I am walking the 5K in the Walk to Fight Arthritis . And I’d love to raise $500 in donations of five dollars each. ...