Having rheumatoid arthritis layered with  osteoarthritis is a tough but a common combination. I have severe arthritis in both my shoulders. RA plays a big role. I was also a lap swimmer for years. Swimming is tough on the shoulders. So my shoulders wore out. Double whammy.

One of my problems with arthritis in the shoulders is hooking my bra. I have been hooking it in the front and then twisting it around  to the back. That has worked but it is becoming harder to do. I have tried sports bras but they are also hard to get on. I haven’t found bras that hook in the front. Of course, the other possibility is not wearing a bra all the time. That will work too. I don’t want to be a sloppy dresser but pain  can persuade me to loosen up especially when I can stay home.

I have had RA for nine years. It is progressive. The DMARDs help as do the biologics.  But the RA is still progressive. I can’t drive anymore because of my numb feet.  I do miss driving my stick shift Mini Cooper Clubman.  My feet were the first to be affected with RA.

My hands are deformed. In the beginning, I was breaking glasses and tipping things over. I could only use my right pointer for typing. That was hard. But my body adjusted. I no long tip or break. Although I can no longer type with the full keyboard, I can use both pointers and all is fine. I adjust.

I  have been to the other side. So I know that as bad as my RA and all its trimmings have been,  an aggressive cancer can be worse. I spent a year in the depths of a different kind of illness. Biopsy with a surprise. Robotic surgery that left me emptied out. A summer of chemo that left me bald and depleted.  An invasive radiation treatment that finished me off. It took me a while to recover. That was four years ago.

I am grateful. Although life is not easy, I am not dying, and life is still pretty good.