A bit annoyed after tonights episode of emmerdale. Does anybody else think RA was trivualized? They do many good story lines highlighting illnesses so people have a better understanding so i was quite angry that faith announced she has RA but its ok the doctor has given her tablets for. We have a hard enough time trying to get people to understand what our daily struggles are. Im hoping itv will be shamed into elaborating more on this storyline in the future so people can have better knowledge of what RA actually is and not just a sore hip!
Sorry for the rant just had to get it out there 😤.
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Amandajane64
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I watched it and when she said the doctor gave her tablets for it I thought...really? We all know that it's a consultant who diagnosis people and they do the initial prescribing of drugs. Let's wait and see what happens, Clare King who plays Kim Tate has RA, I would think/hope that she would make sure they portray it factually,
Yes I thought the same my doctor gave me pain killers as they said it was arthritis something most old people get wear and tear so I struggled on for another 6 months then it got worse then I was sent to see my consultant he said it osteoarthritis more tablets then it got worse 6 months later more blood test diagnosed rheumatoid I knew my body I had to keep pestering them so I hope they show the real illness on emerdale perhaps Kim tate will have some input 😷😳
I don't watch it but millions do and as you say it needs to be portrayed correctly. I would think a lot of people will be writing in about it and rightly so.
Maybe this is just the start of the storyline. This was me at the start, my GP diagnosed me and gave me tablets and I thought that would be it, sorted. Little did I know what was in store. Let us know if the story progresses, it’ll be interesting to see how they tackle it.
My GP told me I had to “expect aches & pains at your age..try taking an aspirin “!I was mid 50’s.Luckily I knew somebody researching RA Drugs so I asked her who should I ask to be referred to…& I was diagnosed with Palindromic Arthritis within a month…with the warning to “keep an eye on things” as he thought it could develop into RA, which it did after two years.
My present GP just looks vacant when I mention RA…I hope my new one is a bit more interested/knowledgeable!
Yes ive had same problem with gp's not aware and they always have to look up toczilizumab when i tell them what im on. Last year when i went for my flu jab at a pharmacy i was told rather abrubtly that just because i had RA it didnt mean i was entitled to a free one!! She also had to look up my meds then sheepishly decided i fitted the category. Makes me very cross that we are made to feel that we have to explain ourselves all the time.🙂
Lovely AC! My morning chuckle...I actually laughed out loud at that one! This site is great for bringing some humour into play.😅 Keep looking on the bright side. x
Aspirin was my first medication, and steroids were offered. Gold followed a year or so later and started to make a big difference. In those days there was no Rheumatology Dept. A General Medical Consultant dealt with everything no surgical. Thank goodness times have changed now.
I was indeed fortunate to have a doctor friend who left hospital practice & went into research on RA drugs,so knew how to work the system to get a referral.When I told my GP who I wanted to see she said had never heard of him & made a big performance looking him up.
I don’t know whether she thought I had made him up…but eventually I got my referral letter….& I’m sure that early diagnosis is why I am still doing well after 20+years.
That was a blessing AC, because early treatment seems to make such a big difference. Once the damage is done it's done and it's a case of stopping it going further, isn't it. Good job you were so persistent with your GP. Hopefully she will have referred others on to him.
I bet she didn’t ….she came from a section of GPs who appear to resent their patient wanting to see a specialist in the disease they have.GP’s are supposed to be “competent all rounders” who acknowledge their limits & refer on those who need a specialist opinion…but all too often try to treat something like RA themselves…hence denying that person the best treatment.
Unfortunately these days….hospital consultants ….particularly Rheumatologist …are as busy if not busier than general practitioners, so whichever way you look at it……getting fast treatment is usually not easy to achieve.
Hi Amandajane (I had a doll called Amanda Jane - loved her to bits - in the 1960s), anyway, I had the same issue with the programme Butterfly that was about a transgender girl. We as a family have had a huge struggle with one of my daughter's children, but the programme made it look so easy to get recognition and treatment. I did think that maybe - like KittyJ that this might be the introduction to the issue. I hope so - surely TV producers must realise the damage they do when they trivialise issues.
Hi AJ, No rant .. you’re right! Yes, I recall Clare doing a newspaper article about her RA. I think she said she was in dmards then many years ago and doing well but had had many issues at first with her joints being stiff etc. I don’t watch Emmerdale as we don’t own a tv (watch selected programmes on iplayer on my Mac.) but to suggest a doc would prescribe your RA pills and it was that simple ..... if only! I think if you’re going to include someone having RA then they should give it more than they did. Maybe they’ll add more in, in the story. x
Quite agree, hubby and I just looked at one another when Faith (in Emmerdale) blurted out she had RA and the GP had prescribed her some tablets. If only.
Just hoping the story line will progress just as the disease does. We wait and see.
Hmph....Clare King was in Strictly many years back, and was interviewed about this and her RA. She basically shrugged it off, and said it didn’t impact on her!
Just watching the Good Doctor on Sky, and one of the young registrar surgeons has just been diagnosed. There was a discussion that this will ruin her career. And then she was shown gritting her teeth in pain and plunging her hands into a bowl of iced water... that’s a bit more like it on diagnosis!!
Yes, I remember Clare King doing a newspaper interview some time ago and basically saying it wasn't much of an issue for her. I don't watch Emmerdale, but I hope they have taken advice on how best to do it! Not seen the Good Doctor either - I'll have to look that one up!! X
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