Tamara Haag

I recently had my 20 RAnniversary, having now lived two decades with a diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis/rheumatoid disease. A reader reached out and shared that she is 22 years old...

I first saw the term “grind culture” on an Instagram post from The Nap Ministry. I immediately knew what it meant, as I’ve spent decades grinding myself down and celebrating...

Living with rheumatoid arthritis/rheumatoid disease (RA/RD) involves an ongoing process of trial-and-error, whether trying to find an effective medication or hitting the level of physical activity that supports health without...

As many as a third of people with rheumatoid arthritis/rheumatoid disease (RA/RD) are diagnosed with what is called seronegative rheumatoid arthritis. This means that rheumatoid factor is not present in...

In September 2000, my life changed. I was 22 years old and was in what was supposed to be my last semester of college. While I should have been exploring...

Before my diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis/rheumatoid disease (RA/RD) in 2000, I’d been repeatedly misdiagnosed for years. Doctors told me I had strains, sprains, tendonitis, and Reiter’s syndrome before I was...

Living with rheumatoid arthritis can feel like a nightmare, which sometimes leads me to daydream about things that would make this journey a little easier. Pain and inflammation are the...

As much as I hate to admit it, pain is important. It is a powerful message sent from a part of the body to the brain to alert that something...

I am grieving the recent death of my sister, and have been initiated to a world of emotional pain I’d previously only seen from a distance. Walking with this level...

Denial is a powerful coping mechanism. Sometimes the depth of a tragedy is too much to bear, and denial allows us to slowly accept the harsh reality we’ve just been dealt...

Last night I had a nightmare. In my dream, I felt a strange sensation in my right wrist, and looked down to see a squirming bulge pulsing under the surface...

I can’t claim I’ve always embraced self-love, especially where my body is concerned. I was in first grade when my body first indicated this was going to be a complicated...

The 10-point pain scale commonly used in medicine can be frustrating for those of us living with painful, chronic conditions. For starters, it is completely subjective. To a person who...

In recent months I’ve been meditating, and this practice has helped me shift my brain’s focus from the pain in my body. As I’ve been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis/rheumatoid disease...

We’re all familiar with that common and oh-so-subjective medical tool, the pain rating scale. “On a scale of 1 to 10, where do you rate your pain?” is a common...

Each time I encounter another person I face a choice: should I pretend to be the person I think I’m supposed to be or should I be authentic? Whenever we...

There are many things to hate about rheumatoid arthritis/rheumatoid disease [RA/RD]. There’s the pain, immobility, and crippling fatigue. There’s the cost, time, discomfort, and side effects of medical treatment. There...

It’s funny how powerful our mental blocks can be. I’ve long heard about the powerful benefits of meditation. For instance, the Mayo Clinic states that meditation may help with stress...

The unpredictable nature of rheumatoid arthritis/rheumatoid disease (RA/RD) is an incredibly frustrating aspect of living with this disease. While I’d rather have intense pain intermittently than relentlessly, it is difficult...

With relief, I finally make it to the end of my workday. All day long I have tried to focus on the task at hand, rather than the pain, and...