Severe pain is a medical emergency. It does not matter whether that pain is acute or chronic. Severe pain is an emergency and must be treated as such. ‘Pain never killed anyone.” I don’t know who said that first, but it’s often repeated. By ignorant slobs who are lucky enough to have never experienced severe […] The post Trigger warning: suicidal ideation, severe chronic pain, the gate keepers preventing me from accessing help – the reality of living with severe chronic pain appeared first on Arthritic Chick ..read more

The only people who think this never go ot the doctor. THE only people who think this are healthy people, utterly deluded with zero empathy for people who are actually sick. Health never makes it into election campaigns with any seriousness. Of  coure people want excellent healthcare…but we already have it..right? No, we don’t. We […] The post People think healthcare is FREE in Australia.  Its not. appeared first on Arthritic Chick ..read more

I can work. I am skilled.  I am experienced.  I want to work. But here are the problems: I can only work part time.  Very part time.  About 10-15 hours per week. And I can’t tell my employer which 10-15 hours I will be able to work. I will need to work those hours when […] The post Living with disabling rheumatoid arthritis and poverty appeared first on Arthritic Chick ..read more

I have been quiet on social media for all the usual reasons.  But the bigger reason is this:  I have stopped taking all my inflammatory arthritis medications, except for prednisiolone. I have written blogs about it, but been so busy with other things, that I  didn’ psot them. Way back, over six months ago, I […] The post Trust your neurologist and life without rheumatoid arthritis medications appeared first on Arthritic Chick ..read more

It’s not going well. In fact, its going very badly. Light exercise is good, but its very easy to do too much, which causes increased pain and increased muscle weakness. Yesterday I moved a few large pots on my back deck and moved some large bags of potting mix (50 litre I think about 20kgs?) […] The post Update on exercise and CIDP – How’s that going? appeared first on Arthritic Chick ..read more

This morning I couldn’t’ feel my feet at all. They were completely numb.  I got up at 4am and over time, feeling has started to return.  Now its 9:30am and I have partial feeling. I can feel things touching my feet, but the sensation is altered.  Not normal.  That’s my usual feeling with my feet […] The post Progressive disease progresses, while I wait for test results appeared first on Arthritic Chick ..read more

As anyone who follows my socials even a little knows, I live well under the poverty line. This is because I live with disbling diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis (RA), mixed connective tissue disease (MCTD), peripheral neuropathy (PN) and chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP). In truth, the RA is a included in the MCTD diagnosis, and […] The post Project make money – any way I can appeared first on Arthritic Chick ..read more

OK, so I wanted to start doing more resistance training again.   Currently my resistance training is my dogs pulling on the leash when we go walking. While that certainly does give me a solid upper body workout, it’s not consistent, nor conducive to gradualling building strength and capacity. I also do archery, which is also […] The post Chronic pain and exercise and why I went to my physiotherapist for help appeared first on Arthritic Chick ..read more

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic autoimmune disease that affects millions of individuals worldwide. It is characterized by joint inflammation, pain, and stiffness, which can significantly impact a person’s quality of life. Understanding the mechanisms behind inflammation in rheumatoid arthritis is crucial for developing effective treatments and improving patient outcomes. Introduction Rheumatoid arthritis is a […] The post Inflammation in Rheumatoid Arthritis: Unravelling the Mechanisms appeared first on Arthritic Chick ..read more

Introduction Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disease that causes chronic inflammation of the joints, leading to pain, stiffness, and swelling. While the exact cause of RA remains unknown, research suggests that both genetic and environmental triggers of rheumatoid arthritis play a significant role in its development. No one trigger will cause RA, but rather […] The post Environmental Triggers of Rheumatoid Arthritis appeared first on Arthritic Chick ..read more