The Seated View

Joint inflammation or contractures. Nodules (small lumps under the skin or in other tissues). A weakened or hoarse voice. Children with these symptoms may have been diagnosed with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) or other types of juvenile arthritis . But do they actually have JIA or do they have Farber’s disease? An equine digression When you hear hoofbeats, think horses, not zebras. This is an adage in the medical world that encourages doctors to not wander off exploring rare and esoteric reasons for a patient’s symptoms. Because most of the time, that hoof beat of a rash likely isn’t the plague, the joint pain more likely a type of arthritis than the bends (especially if the person has never scuba dived) and you get the picture. But once in a while, it actually is a zebra. And even if it’s first identified as a horse, eventually, the stripes come through. It took five years of my parents running around to different doctors before one finally recognized that I had...

Looking for more posts? You can now find me on the brand new The Seated View website .   I’m beginning to wonder if the so far two-month long Fibro flare is going to be the new normal, at least (hopefully) for the duration of the winter. I’m not enjoying it. Aside from the really high pain levels and decimated energy, there is also the intensely excessive brain fog. I’m surprised I can remember my own name at times. So much is falling through the cracks. Of course, this happens in the middle of trying to finish some things for HealthCentral that I should have done last year (see: my health is in the toilet), a ridiculous number of medical appointments, a couple of big projects on my own plate, plus a small upgrade of The Seated View. And then yesterday, my elbow crapped out to the point where it’s hard to use my arm. Did I mention this was my driving arm, my writing arm, and well… my everything arm? I am so done with this winter. I mean, Christmas is over...

Getting a diagnosis of any type of chronic illness can throw you for loop. There is so much to know and you have so little energy. My new slideshow for HealthCentral collects 13 things you need to know as an RA newbie : "Receiving a diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a moment of strange duality. On one hand, you may be relieved to finally have answers for the symptoms you’ve been experiencing. On the other, it can be incredibly overwhelming to find out you have a chronic illness. Wrapping your head around all the new factors RA brings into your life is a long-term process. Here are some of the things you need to know." See the slideshow on HealthCentral . And in case you missed it, here is the Facebook Live I did yesterday talking about this topic:   

I’ve had only a handful in my adult life and they were all red. I am naturally talking about lipsticks. What are you thinking?? Looking for more posts? You can now find me on the brand new The Seated View website .   I have never been a lipstick person. Growing up in a very relaxed country in the 1960s and 70s, lipsticks were the purview of my mother’s generation, not mine. I put makeup on my eyes, but never my lips. With the exception of weddings, that is. When going to weddings, I’d wear lipstick and it was always red. And then I never wore it again. That is, until the next wedding, when the inevitable debate was whether the lipstick that had been rattling around in my makeup bag or drawer was still good or if I should purchase a new one. If the latter, it was red again. And never worn again after the big day. And then a whole lot of things happened and collided in the last two years. There was the medical adventure , which has had a significant im...