RA Spirit in 2016

My podiatrist thinks people with RA have an amazing positive attitude. He says it is unique to his patients with RA. I can understand that. We have no choice but to manage our disease. So we do.

We plod along solving our issues for pain and all the issues large scale damage to our bodies’ joints give us.   If we fail to pick up the responsibility, even more severe pain and disability are but steps away. We figure out how to manage grueling pain, random flares that send us to Medrol packs and heavy pain medications. Limping around on feet that feel like numb bricks. Energy that seeps away until we are but rag dolls wishing for rest. Learning to manage a painful existence isn’t easy. Those of us with RA just do it.

We are experts on hot packs, splints, braces, pacing, and on it goes.  Pacing works well for me. I manage a lot following the concept.  Generally, it is working for short stints interspersed with resting activities.

My pain medication is on a schedule. Works better that way. I wake up in pain and I go to bed in pain and have pain pretty much all day.  The intensity varies. I think every joint in my body has been affected by RA. I have medicine for RA associated nerve damage. I have medicine for pervasive pain. I have medication for the inflammation that is the big enemy.

Today I am making stuffed peppers. Green peppers are at a once-a-year sale 3 for $1. Excellent ground beef is also on sale. So, my once-a-year effort to make stuffed peppers is timely. It helps that I have someone with a healthy, appreciative appetite to cook for. The crock pot is full of stuffed peppers simmering. Next, I will have a coffee and cookie break while reading my Baldacci novel. Then I will clean up my kitchen and wander outside to my garden.