I want to first start off by apologizing to anyone I may have offended in my recent article for A Woman’s Health Magazine (online version) and Women magazine (print version) entitled: For Some With Rheumatoid Arthritis, Beauty Really is Pain. I enjoyed writing this article and was very proud of it, until someone wrote me … Continue reading
Category Archives: chronic illness
When Stars Get Sick: Glamorizing Illness or Bringing Awareness?
It never fails to amaze me how fired up people on the Internet get about celebrities. Like, okay … I’ve been guilty of it to an extent. I’m an admitted fangirl. I’m proudly in the “fandoms” of Britney Spears, Lady Gaga, Justin Timberlake, Taylor Swift, Beyonce, Ed Sheeran, and Oprah. I’m a Grey’s Anatomy lifer. … Continue reading
“What RA Looks Like” – by Healthline
What Rheumatoid Arthritis Looks Like In August, Healthline.com sent a film crew to my home in Pittsburgh. They followed me around for 8 hours to see what a typical day is like for me as a patient with RA. (Of course, we all know that there is no “typical” day. That day, I was able … Continue reading
#RealTalkRA Summit: Pharma, Fun, and Friends
This week, I was invited by Pfizer to attend the 2017 Real Talk Summit in New York City. While they did compensate me for my time and took care of accommodations, I’m going to go ahead and disclaim now that they are NOT paying me for this blog post, and did NOT ask *or* … Continue reading
My Joints Are 90 Years Old, But That’s OK
✨✨ Long post, but I promise it has a point. Please read to the end! (And please excuse typos.) ✨✨ In the past year, I have been told by orthopedic surgeons that my right knee looks like an 80-year-old’s. I was told that my right foot and ankle look like a 90-year-old. And yesterday, that my … Continue reading
Doing What We Can
Something I’ve struggled with during my decades of illness is what I WANT to do, versus what I CAN do. I’m learning to accept that I can only do what I can. Some days, like last weekend, it is hiking up over 500 steps on the side of a mountain. Some days, like yesterday, it … Continue reading
No, Lady Gaga Did NOT Confirm That She Has Rheumatoid Arthritis
A post has gone viral in recent days, feverishly declaring that “Lady Gaga Has RA!” “Lady Gaga Reveals She Has Rheumatoid Arthritis” and “Pop Star Lady Gaga Opens Up About Life With Rheumatoid Arthritis.” Except … she never specifically revealed that she has it. I admit that I was guilty of initially, (hesitantly) sharing it with a … Continue reading