How helpful is it to read about other people... - Stand Up 2 OA
Stand Up 2 OA
How helpful is it to read about other peoples experience with chronic knee pain?
Reading about others knee pain is a little upsetting, as it does show up some of the failings in the NHS and other care providers. It does show what a resilient group of people that have knee pain and find ways to relieve it, and cope.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this. You are right that it can be upsetting to hear about situations that are difficult, and systems that don't always meet people's needs. And as you say, it shows how resilient people are to overcome the challenges. Communities do seem to strengthen resilience because you know you are not alone in your challenges and that you can learn from other people in your situation, so we are happy you find it helpful overall 
I agree with jointpain that reading about others struggle with knee pain is upsetting. Particularly how the healthcare system is so dismissive of the health problems of seniors like us. We have, in our time, contributed so much to society, and continue to do so in various ways. The lack of inter-generational reciprocity pains me. In this context, the book written by Dr. Atul Gawande (USA) "Being Mortal: Medicine and what Matters in the End" is reassuring - that there are some new perspectives in caring for elders. Its worth reading.
thanks so much for the recommendation for this book. I found it on Amazon so here is the link for Dr Gawande's book for anyone wanting to take a closer look a.co/d/fniVyzv
Ageism, sexism and racism all have a significant impact on how senior women may receive care for all health conditions, not just chronic knee pain, and it's something that we try to highlight in the Start Moving community. You might add weightism to that list because we know that people with higher weight are treated differently. People with health conditions can help challenge ageism and sexism and other forms of discrimination by being aware and being empowered to push back on unfairness, so we hope we can help you with that by encouraging discussions about the problem.
Dear newjourney, I believe that it is in sharing of experiences that we can enrich our own knowledge and sensitivity to people and other matters. This includes sensitivity to ourselves! Thank you for providing that link. Now I can refer it to others outside this space too pretty easily.
Moderation team
