Living

Rheumatoid disease (RD)* can cause more than joint pain, destruction, and disability (as if that’s not enough!). It’s an autoimmune disease that causes the body’s immune system to attack the...

My pathway to a rheumatoid arthritis diagnosis was lengthy. But, I felt so grateful to have reached a definitive answer - it meant that my doctor and I could begin...

There is one thing I dislike more than mornings and that’s clothes. Clothes are the worst. They are constricting, they carry more weight than a person’s personality, and they are...

A few months ago, I broke my hip. Naturally, my leg muscles got really weak, really quickly. Like many people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), it has always been hard for...

Cue the orchestra. The Maestro is ready to play once again. This time with special guest star COVID-19. I do not know a thing about reading music. I took piano...

I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) at the age of 30 - although I struggled with joint pains since childhood - indicating that my battle with this autoimmune disease...

There's been a lot of talk lately about pre-sliced produce — both vegetables and fruit - in terms of accessibility, functionality, and, overall convenience. It's not really exclusive to just...

Intimacy is extremely personal. It can be beautiful, it can be complicated, and it can be a hundred things in-between. Living with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), I’ve found that, with a...

Doctors. When you have rheumatoid arthritis or, really, any chronic illness, doctors become a permanent part of your life – a phenomenon that happens with no other illness. No other...

Sometimes, the suggestions for managing my rheumatoid arthritis symptoms feel ironic. My joints are screaming in pain and I don’t want to move? Oh, exercise can definitely help that! I’m...

Told you I’d be back! I recently wrote about fatigue, one of several rheumatoid disease (arthritis) symptoms. It runs with joint pain, chronic low fevers, and feeling puny - my...

So, let’s talk shoes. I truly think I have spent enough money on shoes and now possess enough shoes to open my own store at this point!  For me, the key...

As I’ve largely stayed home during the pandemic, it’s been a constant worry: Will my communities be accessible when I return? Even before the pandemic, I had daily struggles with...

I have been lucky enough to work from home since long before the pandemic began. Due to my chronic illnesses, I have placed myself in industries and taken jobs that...

My grip strength was always an issue with my rheumatoid arthritis. I remember when I started losing my grip and couldn’t grasp the holds on the climbing wall. I remember...

Without fail at every appointment with my rheumatologist, he asks if I have been coughing and listens to my lungs. Every couple of years, he orders chest x-rays to make...

Recently, a third COVID-19 vaccine dose was made available to immunocompromised individuals. You have to, of course, get the same brand of vaccine that is the same as your first...

An amazing thing has happened, I've realized over the last year. Maybe I sound silly and superstitious, but I almost don't want to write about it, for fear my good...

I started walking regularly only in November of 2020. Before that, I could barely walk because I moved as much side-to-side as I did forward. It was frustrating. But then...

There are many shared experiences of living with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) that connect people all across the community. Whether those experiences are difficult to navigate, physically draining, or just plain...