I've had RA flare ups since I was a child. Sometimes with huge gaps and I'm like many of us , apart from the joint damage left by these flare ups try to forget I have it. My left hip is due to be replaced but I've been hanging on , even though the surgeon has said he will do it asap. Well last week I went to London to visit my daughter and she had to,pop to,meet a friend for an hour. Her partner was being nice and took me to his fav Italian for cake, well I had to walk miles up and down stairs too ..I've been in so much pain since... People just don't seem to get that even though I'm on the list for a new hip , I can't walk miles. Now I'm struggling to work which is again on my feet all day. I don't want to be a person who say I've got RA all the time just difficult to balance staying well. I've already had a right hip replacement and recovered well. I had my last big flare up after doing too long days at work ........ I would recommend anyone with RA to take care between flare ups because my experience is if you don't it comes back to tap,you right on the shoulder to say I'm back .....
Overdone it !: I've had RA flare ups since I was a... - NRAS
Overdone it !
Hi, it's a difficult one isn't it. As twitchy was saying the other day, the problem is we look ok.
I'm due to go a girls weekend in July, the last time we met up a couple years ago now,we walked for miles,then the shops,as girls do. Plus the train journey with a case. I couldn't move the next week,so much pain. I know I'm a lot worse now than I was then. So what to do, pull out. I love seeing them & we get on great but they have no understanding of this condition.
I hope you get your hip sorted soon. In guessing the Italian cake wasn't worth the outcome!!
It was gorgeous cake, lol..... I just think as you say , you look ok so people forget your not able to walk miles without paying the price. As for your girls weekend, you have to go as the RA rules your life if you let it and fun helps with everything. Thanks for the reply it really helps to have people who know exactly how you feel , you've cheered me up .
Sounds perfect to me, much better than climbing mountains.
I agree with Menorca - I've never let my RA or related problems stop me doing things until these past few months. And even thenhasn't been the pain or prospect of subsequent flares that has stopped me - but being in bed with flu and pneumonia or incarcerated on a hospital ward or not being able to drive for dizziness and no lift a available.
I would never let painful joints alone stop me from doing the things I love or am committed to. I did go to choir practice a few days after getting out of hospital the first time and singing did have some unpleasant consequences that I posted about.
And I have missed a lot of rehearsals this year. But when the choir mistress asked me by email on Monday if it wasn't just too much and shouldn't I be prioritising my health - I wrote straight back saying I am - this is my health and as long as you'll have me I'll do whatever it takes to practice and catch up.
If I don't sing in this year's concerts then I will become depressed which will impact more on my health than overcoming practical hurdles it takes to get there. Tomorrow I'll rest all day - not take my new Dihydrocodeine in the afternoon and set off early in my own but I will get to choir practice somehow tomorrow night having missed last week's being admitted to hospital.
And the next night my hubby and I will go to dinner with friends - who know I've been ill and sweetly asked me for a list of foods I can't eat - and I will be able to drink a bit and laugh a lot despite the probably consequences the next day.
Last Friday I missed going to other friends and bless them they came to visit me in hospital with the pudding from the night before! They hadn't a clue why I was there really but then nor did I to be honest!
I just know that I would become so resentful and grumpy if I sacrificed my social life and my hobby as well as my work (already on hold) and a large dose of self esteem.
It sounds like you have some wonderful friends , they can be a real tonic . I agree that it's all about doing things you can enjoy and a social life lifts your spirits .
Thanks Menorca. I tell my friends and family about RA. Those that can't take it aren't proper friends and those that can generally tell me their woes too. It is very difficult for friends and family to grasp that this thing doesn't just go away because you've had a hip replacement or are taking a DMARD. And if people forget that you have RA then it's probably because you engage them on many other levels and hide your pain well. So it is important to remind people you care about that you will pay a high price for climbing up and down stairs to see them - but also that they are worth it. Tx
What a lovely reply , thank-you ..... X
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