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The RA Rollercoaster

There was a time when I thought life was linear. I would go to school, graduate high school, go to college, take one year off, go to vet school, do my residency then start my career...
...

...
HAH! Is all I can say about that.

An RA diagnosis during college

Halfway through my college career, I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and, try as I might to stay on the same track, I found out real quickly that life no longer fell on the straight and narrow. It felt more like jumping from a plane without a parachute, to be honest.

But, as I tried more and more medications and altered my lifestyle, I found myself snatched from freefall and landing in a rather rickety rollercoaster seat.

A never-ending rollercoaster

Let me preface this by saying, I’ve been in a pretty good place, medically, for many years now. I would even venture to say an even-keeled 5-6 years.

However, I still find myself on the never-ending rollercoaster of daily to monthly struggles of rheumatoid arthritis.

The loop-de-loops of managing RA

This autoimmune won’t quit. Just as I think, "Hey, I’m on a flat piece track," I lurch forward and up and down. Just as I think, "Hey, I’ve gotten a slight handle on this," I’m sent for a massive loop-de-loop.

Drastic changes in symptoms

RA is a present that keeps on giving. I may wake up feeling flared and have to increase my prednisone. I may have been in a flare for days and wake up feeling perfectly fine.

Even within the day, I may go up to down and all around.

Of course, no rollercoaster is complete without that quick drop that makes you feel like your organs left your body and that has happened more times than I can count. Most notably, a few years ago.

I thought I had reached a version of remission. I was still on all my medications, but I was on the lowest dose of steroids ever and I nearly forgot that I had RA most days! That, unfortunately, only lasted a few months.

I was feeling good, even great, and then all of a sudden: pitfall. I flared nastily without any warning and I was back on that rollercoaster loop at full speed.

My chronic sinusitis was back

A more recent experience (a little less RA-related but still inflammation so...) happened with my chronic sinusitis. If you've read any of my previous articles, you may know about my ongoing sinus issues.

After my second cat, Sunsilk, passed away in November 2020, my sinus issues miraculously disappeared. At the time, I had a slight infection but after I washed my clothes and my bed linens, my sinus issues disappeared overnight (note: I am allergic to cats and dogs).

I had no warning

It was not until about a few months ago (March 2021) that I woke up with a massive amount of blood in my sinuses (a new post on that saga coming soon!).

I had no warning. My sinuses were doing great. I had no congestion and no pressure. I had no allergy symptoms, etc, and POOF! One day, I woke up and my chronic sinusitis was back in full force.

There's always a surprise

Every time I feel like I have something under control, I’m always in for a surprise.

Rollercoasters don’t stop, just like these chronic illnesses. They are a constant circuit that lets us grab the reins for a while before shifting gears and jerking us around.

What are some examples of your RA rollercoaster? LMK in the comments!

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