Nan Hart

Walking. Such an important and necessary part of our lives.  We need to do it just to function. Not to mention the joy that it brings or the part it...

Handling RA on a day to day basis requires a lot of tools.  From my perspective one of the most important and perhaps less tangible ones is attitude.  For me...

I would imagine that like me, most of you are asked from time to time to explain the type of pain you are feeling in your joints ravaged by RA...

With February being the month designated to celebrate love (thank you Valentine's Day) PLUS my birthday falls on that day PLUS my last name is Hart I felt compelled to...

One aspect of living with a chronic disease like RA that often gets little attention is the notion of anticipation.  What I mean by that is the very real prospect...

I often feel that in today's world we are all so busy and in such a rush to get our point across that we sometimes forget the simple value of...

Taking a look at RA from the perspective of the good, the bad and the ugly reveals some interesting insights worth sharing. Let's start with the good. For me the good...

This is without a doubt my absolute favorite time of year.  Yes, I actually do better RA wise once the days are a bit more crisp, the humidity has gone...

"Ask and you shall receive" is a wonderful suggestion, but short of having a magic genie in our pockets, it is not true, for the most part.  However how I...

I recently had an interesting experience that led to me reflecting on when and how do we extend ourselves to others suffering with RA. Are there some boundaries we need...

One of my favorite songs comes from the Byrds - Turn, Turn, Turn.  Whenever I hear it the lyrics really wash over me and I just feel as though every...

Among the many ongoing decisions associated with wisely managing Rheumatoid Arthritis, arguably the most crucial one is who to turn to for treatment.  First you must decide which medical professional...

One of the many challenges we face as we move through the years managing a chronic disease like RA, is finding the balance between being vigilant about our health and...

I have always enjoyed clothes.  Shopping for them, selecting outfits, wearing them, etc.  It may seem strange but the fact is RA effects everything associated with dressing.  Years ago, I...

It seems that so much of our time managing RA centers around the main aspects of the disease itself, i.e. the joint pain, swelling, fatigue, etc. that it may be...

I can imagine that at first glance the notion of laughing about a chronic disease borders on absurdity. But let me make a case for why laughing can actually improve...

So the final E in my EEE approach to RA management is Engaging (the first two E's can be found here and here.) .  By that I mean simply staying...

You would think that after nearly 20 years, my memory of the onset and diagnosis of Rheumatoid Arthritis would be at best faded and at worst deposited into a long...

I have learned through the years of association and friendship with others with Rheumatoid Arthritis that many of us were used to living in the "fast lane" pre-RA.  By that...

I have always lived with the credo that as one door closes another one opens.  This has proven true on so many levels throughout my journey with RA.  For instance...