#lovelyjoints

[carolinesjourney]

Arthritis Got Me Feeling Thankful

It is Thanksgiving! The time of year where one counts his/her blessings.

With having a chronic disease, it may be more difficult to find the blessings. I know that most days can be filled with focusing on all that is going wrong with your body.

Over the past year, as my health has improved, I have tried to focus on the blessings that my chronic disease has shown me. And it is amazing that a situation which seems only to be dark and horrible can actually produce wonderful things.

Don’t get me wrong: chronic diseases are the worse! It has only been recently that I have come to view the positive aspects of a disease. It took years! And I still have my bad days and that is okay. I try as best as I can to focus on the positive.

So in my almost 10 years of having arthritis I have learned some great lessons, for which I am grateful for!

-Thankful for good days. What makes people with chronic diseases (spoonies) awesome is that we appreciate good days SO MUCH! A day that the pain is a little less and the sun seems to shine a little brighter is a call for celebration!

-Don’t take your health for granted. I am thankful that my health could be a lot worse, but it  is not. I am never going to take my health for granted!

-Focusing more on health. When your body doesn’t function properly, most people develop a passion for trying to be healthy to help the body. I know I have. Every little effort helps! Team work.

-Thankful that the body can do so much! I didn’t realize how much the body can do until it started breaking down! haha. Even though all my parts may not work 100%, I appreciate all that it can do!

-The body is SO COMPLICATED! Is this a good or bad thing? Depends on the day! I am always amazed by the body. Humbled.

-Exercise. Thanks to arthritis, I try to exercise more! Motion is lotion.

-Constant communication with health professionals. With a chronic disease, there comes a lot of doctor’s visits and blood work. I like to think that being in constant communication with health professionals increases the chance that you will find something wrong in an early stage and be able to attacked it sooner rather than later.

-Thankful for my family. Arthritis, or any disease, doesn’t just affect you. It affects those around you. Without the support of my family I don’t know if I could have made it this far.

-I have met some amazing people. Because of arthritis, I have joined networks and groups that I would not have done if I didn’t have arthritis. If I didn’t join these groups I would not have met some amazing people.

http://lovelyjoints.wordpress.com/2014/11/27/arthritis-got-me-feeling-thankful/

[carolinesjourney]

Feeling Sorry For My Rheumatologist

At my doctor’s appointment today, we went over many random topics, one was Ebola. Another one made me feel truly sorry for my doctor.

We were talking about different arthritis medication and she told me of one patient that had tried a lot of medicine before they found the one that worked for him. He suffered for two years in pain.

My rheumatologist also told me of other patients who had developed other conditions or were sick for long periods of time. Because of some drug interaction, they were not able to take their arthritis medication. One lady could not take it because the drug interaction might killer her! She was in a lot of pain and begged our rheumatologist for relief, but she could not take the medicine.

These stories broke my heart. I can’t imagine what it was like for my doctor. It must take a toll when you have to deliver bad news to a patient, or when nothing seems to work.

In relation to chronic diseases, people talk a lot about the person that has the disease and how they suffer and how they feel. What about those around them? What about those who take care of them? What about their doctors? How does arthritis effect these group of people?

(http://lovelyjoints.wordpress.com/2014/10/17/feeling-sorry-for-my-rheumatologist/)

[carolinesjourney]

Thankful For A Good Doctor's Appointment

Today I had an appointment with my rheumatologist. Over the last year or so I have grown to really like, and respect, my doctor. That wasn’t always the case. I felt like my doctor wasn’t sensitive to how I was feeling when some news were shared with me.

Because of a streak of not so good news, I not get stressed before going to my doctor. But I am happy to report that the last couple of visits have gone really well! I have opened up to my doctor more and we have been talking more during my visits. She is a smart and talented lady.

With my health issues, I have learned to be thankful for a lot! And I have learned to be truly thankful for the small things, even a good doctor’s appointment.

(http://lovelyjoints.wordpress.com/2014/10/17/thankful-for-a-good-doctors-appointment/)

[carolinesjourney]

All That Matters Is Your Attitude and Heart

At the entrance of my cube at work  I have pictures and other items from Arthritis Foundation events I have been involved with over the years.

The other day, a co-worker of mine saw the pictures and started up a conversation about arthritis. He opened up and shared that he had arthritis in his knee due to his many years of playing soccer. I also shared about my struggles.

I showed him that my elbow doesn’t fully extend and he shared that when he works on the hard floors his knee gives him pain. He kept saying sorry that I had arthritis. I told him that it was okay. It could be much worse.

He then pointed to his head and his heart saying that those two things are the only things that truly matter. He is right.

It doesn’t matter what you look like; if you have arthritis or not, or if you can fully extend your elbow or can’t, all that matters is your attitude and your heart.

I have met people who have their own serious health problems and it always seems that these people are the most positive and hard working! The one I really remember is my friend Suzanne in high school. She had cancer as a kid, and because of that, struggled with multiple health issues. But if you asked me who the most positive person I have met, it would be Suzanne. She is a beautiful person inside and out. Despite all her health issues, which she had every right to complain, she never did. She was always thankful.

Your attitude can make a horrible situation not that bad or it can take a great situation and make it terrible. The choice is yours. With your chronic disease you can complain all the time or solider on.

I believe that a positive attitude can help manage your chronic pain. If you just focus on how bad the pain is, chances are you are going to make it worse. By trying to be positive, you will maybe concentrate less on the pain and focus on the good in your life.

And don’t forget to have heart. Have a passion in life that you can focus on instead of the pain. Have compassion on others because there is someone out there who is suffering more than you.

And when you have a huge heart you attract others and that means you will not be alone in your struggles!

I found comfort from this conversation I had with my co-worker. It doesn’t matter what I look like or if I can’t move my elbow. The most important is my attitude and heart.

http://lovelyjoints.wordpress.com/2014/06/22/all-that-matters-is-your-attitude-and-heart/