Rheumatoid Arthritis: What you need to know

Read article: treated.com/blog/rheumatoid...

[helixhelix]

Why is NRAS promoting a private (presumably for profit) pharmacy? Seems very bizarre to me......

[Hidden in reply to helixhelix]

Hi helixhelix , the content about RA in the article was provided by NRAS. We are merely sharing it because we think it's a useful read

[helixhelix in reply to Hidden]

The article is good, so no problem with that being copied and shared. What I am less happy about is that having looked at it I am now being bombarded by ads from treated.com which seems to have found its way round my ad blocker.

[Ali_H]

I find the comment re exercise "Strengthening exercises are also important to keep the muscles around the joints strong. However, it can be difficult to educate people in this respect" patronising because it's not about me being uneducable about the importance of exercise but about me finding the energy to hold down a full time teaching job and then find some more to exercise with - we are not thick you know- we are just living with a long term potentially debilitating medical condition which saps mental, psychological and physical energy 24/7 and often throws in a hefty dolup of pain on top.

Ali

[Zip1 in reply to Ali_H]

Well said!

[Hidden in reply to Ali_H]

Absolutely

[Hidden in reply to Ali_H]

nras.org.uk/exercise-videos

Hi Ali, The joys of journalism! Regarding your comments above that was not how Ailsa will have worded the comment - this was an interview over the phone and was then written up by the interviewer so unfortunately it does happen that they mis-quote or alter the "tone" of what was said. You can see Ailsa and many others taking part in a variety of exercises within a home environment by following the above link to a section on our website. We developed this online resource to address exactly what you refer to ie it is really, really difficult to find the time to "exercise" when managing a LTC and a job and family etc etc so these videos give some ideas of how to do various exercises when you have a few minutes. Believe me Ailsa herself knows exactly where you're coming from having lived with aggresive RA for 30+ years and regularly working 10-12 hour days so please don't think for a moment the comment was meant to be in anyway patronising.

[rawillbebeaten in reply to Hidden]

Thanks Clare, I totally understand where Ali_H is coming from, as you have, but I read the article more that the person knew first hand the difficulties, as you describe. My enemy for exercise is fatigue, even more now my Lovely Labrador has passed on and I don't have that essential need to go for a walk. It is a struggle working full time and constantly saying to Friends I'll come to that but anything the next day is a no go, I'll be resting. We all know that exercise will help but getting through the fog and discomfort is difficult. I do sometimes think just to walk upstairs another time is a good thing and 10 yards extra walking is an achievement. The main thing is getting wider awareness of the difficulties, which over time my friends and family have grasped, so I'm very lucky. NRAS are working towards that so that's great

Michele

[MickeyJoints]

I feel this point is vital to get across to some I talk with:

"RA is a heterogeneous disease,’ Ailsa explains, ‘it manifests itself differently in different people. This can make it difficult to pinpoint what treatment works best for each individual so further research into the area is currently being done."

It's personal. It's my disease.

MJ

[Ali_H]

Thanks for taking the time to reply Claire... it's just such 'Miss-information' makes daily life that more difficult for sufferers (along with misplaced dietary advice from non-professionals, advocacy for unproven supplementation and general lack of knowledge about the non-joint elements of the condition).

Thanks again

Ali