Living

It struck me recently how much different RA is during the day versus at night for me.  I wonder if this true for others of just one of those quirky...

"I Don't Drink Coffee. Should I Start?" is the headline of an article I just read in The New York Times' "Health" section, written by a non-coffee drinker who is...

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...

I'm a slightly smaller wee bird these days. In January, I challenged myself to get serious about dropping some excess weight. The reasons are righteous (and, let’s face it, unavoidable). First...

When I was a child, it was difficult to understand my illness. All I could comprehend was that I didn’t feel well and had to take medications and do therapies...

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 have been fortunate to have cats since I can remember. Our first cat when I was a little girl was black and white, lived outside, and was aptly named...

Applying for Social Security Disability Benefits The Social Security Administration is a branch of the United States federal government that provides disability benefits to individuals who cannot work due to...

Back in November of last year I started a new biologic drug to treat my rheumatoid disease. Having had two other biologics fail me utterly during the previous 12 months...

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...

My feet are strange and unusual. Perhaps I should call them unique. They are abnormally small, which I attribute to my rheumatoid arthritis constricting their natural growth trajectory. Additionally, many...

“Incurable.” I hate that word. It’s so final, so deadpan, and so totally hopeless. When I hear or read it my first reaction is to turn away, shut down, and...

Recently I had the opportunity to talk with my parents about their experience having a child with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). I was diagnosed at a very young age (about 2...

With RA it seems like there is always something going on: pain, swelling, even the occasional fever. So how do you sort out what’s “normal” and when you need to...

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...

I’m an extrovert. While dictionaries generally define an “extrovert” as an outgoing person, psychologists and personality tests often look at the word not in terms of friendliness, but rather by...

For those who have been diagnosed with chronic illness, it may be the worst thing that has ever happened to you.  It certainly was for me.  But then my dad...

Growing up in upstate New York we had our fair share of heavy snowstorms. But living in DC for the past 15+ years has been a different story. We recently...

By now, just about everyone has heard the sad news about Glenn Frey, co-founder and musician/songwriter of the Eagles, the wildly popular 70s band. His untimely death on January 18...

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...