Selena Gomez and Lupus: My Thoughts
Arthritis / Autoimmune / Entertainment / Lupus / Pop Culture / Selena Gomez / SLE

Selena Gomez and Lupus: My Thoughts

Last night, singer, actress, and designer Selena Gomez gave a beautiful and heartfelt performance at the 2014 American Music Awards, with best friend Taylor Swift rooting her on from the audience. Onlookers would not have known anything was wrong with Gomez, other than, perhaps, heartbreak from her on-again, off-again relationship with Justin Bieber. Yet, headlines … Continue reading

Get Paid to Help Further Rheumatoid Arthritis & Autoimmune Research
Advocacy / Arthritis / arthritis awareness / arthritis blog / chronic illness / invisible illness / RA awareness / rheum awareness / rheumatoid arthritis awareness

Get Paid to Help Further Rheumatoid Arthritis & Autoimmune Research

Do you have rheumatoid arthritis? Do you want to play a part in helping further RA research? How about this — do you want to be paid for your time AND give back to charity, while you’re at it? With Sanguine, you will be able to donate blood so that researchers can study it to … Continue reading

Healthline.com – Mothers with RA May Have Premature or Underweight Babies
Arthritis / arthritis awareness / arthritis blog / rheumatoid arthritis awareness / Types of Arthritis

Healthline.com – Mothers with RA May Have Premature or Underweight Babies

A new study of 2 million mothers showed that moms with rheumatoid arthritis were more likely to have premature and underweight babies. I wrote an article about this new Danish rheumatology study here, at Healthline.com. Enjoy! – http://www.healthline.com/health-news/women-with-ra-more-likely-to-have-premature-babies-111814 Continue reading

Pay No Attention to the Man Behind the Curtain: Public Selfies & Private Illness
Arthritis / arthritis blog / Awareness / chronic illness / instagram / invisible illness / Personal Stories / selfies / social media

Pay No Attention to the Man Behind the Curtain: Public Selfies & Private Illness

“Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.”  It’s one of the most powerful lines from the movie and book, The Wizard of Oz. It’s such a simple quote — so relevant to the scene, that we usually don’t think of the symbolism that lies within it. it got me thinking, though, about “the … Continue reading

I’m Gluten-Free: 15 Things You Need to Know About the Celiac Lifestyle
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I’m Gluten-Free: 15 Things You Need to Know About the Celiac Lifestyle

I’m gluten-free. No, it isn’t by choice. Yes, it is necessary. No, I cannot cheat. Yes, I will get sick — possibly short-term, definitely long-term — if i ingest gluten. Now that the basics are out of the way, here are 15 more things you need to know about my gluten-free, Celiac-friendly lifestyle: Celiac Sprue … Continue reading

Finding Faith During Times of Chaos
Advocacy / Arthritis / arthritis awareness / Ashley's Health Diary / Awareness / Journey to Wellness / Personal Stories / rheum awareness / Uncategorized / Wellness

Finding Faith During Times of Chaos

I’ve learned something: Illness turns many people away from God. Suffering makes many question their faith. However, these times of chaos and seemingly “ungodly” pain causes others to go the opposite direction, running towards God and embracing their faith with arms wide open. Of course, there are those of you who are agnostics and atheists, … Continue reading

Rant Time: Don’t “Quantify” the Sick Girl
Advocacy / Arthritis / Journey to Wellness / Personal Stories / Wellness

Rant Time: Don’t “Quantify” the Sick Girl

You know how it’s rude to say things like, “you throw okay … for a girl.” Or, “you run pretty fast … for being so big.” It’s also somewhat insulting to say things like, “wow! You’ve accomplished so much … despite being sick.” No, I haven’t accomplished a lot “for being a sick girl.” I’ve … Continue reading

How Much Do Our Emotions and Life Decisions Contribute to Our Disease Symptoms?
Arthritis / Journey to Wellness / Wellness

How Much Do Our Emotions and Life Decisions Contribute to Our Disease Symptoms?

I read a really interesting piece recently about some symptoms of chronic illnesses being, not caused by, but, exacerbated by, one’s life being out-of-balance or on the wrong path i.e. wrong career, wrong spouse or romantic partner, no spiritual compass, minimal friends or social prospects, little community involvement, too much focus on the self or … Continue reading