Lessons in the Infusion Room

infusion rheumatoid arthritis
I had my regular dose of reality check this month. While hooked up to an IV feeding the magic drug that prevents me from deteriorating, I chatted with a fellow arthritis patient. Ms. S is 75, has had RA since she was 35, lives alone, mows her own 2-acre lot and takes care of her house. She does all of this, despite the fact that her hands are bent beyond recognition and she is quite obviously in pain on a daily basis. I never heard her complain once during our morning infusion, even after the nurse had to stick her three times. 
I’m sure throughout our lives we have all met people like this. People who have had it rough and yet never seem to whine or play the victim. People who never take for granted their independence, and in fact fight tooth and nail to keep it. When I asked Miss S why she never remarried after losing her husband to cancer, she said “Why on Earth would I do that? What man could possibly keep up with me?” 
I admire Ms. S and all the others who share that same determination. The disease does not define her. It is part of her daily life but it is not part of her daily thoughts or focus. This is one of the reasons that I rarely write about having rheumatoid arthritis. I realized early on with the diagnosis that I could easily fall into a victim mentality if I let myself focus on being sick. I could convince myself that I was unique, that I had special needs, that I could make excuses. But I was lucky, because during my infusions I have met many people like Ms. S who remind me of the type of person I want to be.

Fearless.  Free.  Grateful to be alive.

shinrin-yoku japanese forest bathing

 

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Rheumatoid Arthritis Tool Bag

Rheumatoid Arthritis can be a scary diagnosis, but fortunately there are TONS of resources available. I’ve had RA for five years & I’m certainly no expert, but I can share what I’ve learned so far.

START HERE  

Arthritis Foundation      
National organization whose mission is to guide families in developing personalized plans for living a full life.  Perfect starting point if you’ve recently been diagnosed.
RA Warrior
This blog was a life-saver for me during my first year of diagnosis, offering the perfect balance of science & personal stories.
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Walking the Koppenwinkl Loop

In my last post, I waxed poetic about how Obertraun Austria is a mecca for hiking, which is why our intent was to hike every day that we were there. Unfortunately I was reminded once again that my 37 year old body is more like a 67 year old body…it can’t just keep going without rest. The RA kicked in by day 5 and my legs were shot. I had taken a muscle relaxer the previous night so I was also very dopey when we woke up to a dreary rainy day. So we opted for a shorter route close by, the Koppenwinkl loop trail which took about 3 hours.
The Koppenwinkl trail followed the Traun river & began & ended in Obertraun. The advantage of rainy weather is that we got beautiful soft images such as these…
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