Tuesday, September 30, 2014

RA In America Survey!

If you have RA, please consider taking the 2014 RA in America Survey conducted by RheumatoidArthritis.net!!

Monday, September 29, 2014

The RA Pregnancy Chronicles: Guide To My Second Pregnancy

CONCEPTION: Getting Pregnant In the First Place
If you have RA and are thinking about starting a family, here are some things you should consider and some tips that might help. Read more...

WEEK 4: My Second Pregnancy Begins
I am excited to share stories from my second pregnancy on RheumatoidArthritis.net. I can’t promise that my story will always be uplifting, but I can promise that it will be honest. And though it may not be an easy task, I can promise that I will show it is possible (& wonderful!) to start a family while living with RA. Read more...

WEEK 6: Life Without RA Medications
Being a parent is all about sacrificing your own needs for the needs of your children. It’s a challenge that every parent faces. But, for those of us living with chronic illnesses like RA, there are all sorts of extra scarifies, difficulties, and doubts we have to face. Read more...

WEEK 9: Morning Sickness and Other Unpleasantness
Life with RA can sometimes feel like a constant Catch-22, a paradoxical set of circumstances where you find yourself forced to make a decision where it feels like you lose no matter what option you choose...In a strange way, I think these experiences make women with RA uniquely qualified to deal with the completely bizarre things that happen to your body while you are pregnant. Read more...
 
WEEK 12: The Magic R-Word
Despite more than five years of living with RA, sometimes the R-word still seems too magical to say/type! But if you’ve ever read anything about RA and pregnancy, you’ll have read some statistic about the possibility of going into remission while pregnant. Read more...

WEEK 14: Pregnancy-Safe RA Relief
I'm finding my symptoms to be even more frustrating because there are so few options for addressing aches/pains while pregnant. I've been brainstorming what I can do instead & wanted to share my ideas. Read more...
 
WEEK 18: RA-Friendly Baby Gear
Buying the right baby gear can be overwhelming for anyone, but even more so if you're also dealing with RA. In this article I share my recommendations to make life as a parent with RA a little easier. Read more...  

WEEK 19: Making The Most of Breastfeeding
Women with RA can find breastfeeding to be challenging for many reasons. Here are some tips to help you make the most of breastfeeding! Read more...

WEEK 23: Sometimes Being Pregnant With Arthritis Is Hard
Unfortunately I don’t think it can be denied any longer: my RA is officially flaring. I'm also waking up with the most extreme morning stiffness I have ever experienced – it feels like I have been run over with a steamroller. And the fatigue (combined from the RA flare, difficult pregnancy, and chasing a toddler) is beyond soul crushing. Read more...

WEEK 30: Balancing Acts & Difficult Decisions
Life with RA can be a near constant balancing act. You balance the benefits of medications against the potential risks. You must balance exercise & continued movement against pain and fatigue. You even have to balance your desires & dreams against your realities & capabilities. Read more...

WEEK 32: The Post-Birth RA Flare
It is common to experience an RA flare postpartum, but there are several things one can do to make this period of time easier. Read more...
 
WEEK 34: Birth Positions
The birth instructor kept talking about “using what nature provides” to make the birth process easier, and I couldn’t stop thinking about how unfair it was that nature had provided me with a bunch of inflamed joints and the ability to get fatigued more easily than other women, which wasn’t going to make the birth process any easier! Read more...

SIX WEEKS POSTPARTUM: The Birth of My Second Baby
It is time for me to go back on the methotrexate because at this point I have been living with partially treated RA for FOUR years. Though I must say it has been totally worth it for my two beautiful boys. Read more...

The RA Pregnancy Chronicles: The Birth of My Second Baby

NOTE: As you can see from this post, RheumatoidArthritis.net is a little bit behind reality in publishing my pregnancy stories. So now you can go back in time and read about the birth of my second baby! ~;o)

The RA Pregnancy Chronicles is a series of posts that share my experiences being pregnant while living with RA. This post was written six weeks after the birth of my second baby. 

It is time for me to go back on the methotrexate because at this point I have been living with partially treated RA for FOUR years. Though I must say it has been totally worth it for my two beautiful boys.

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Reasons My Son Is Crying

Reasons my son is crying: we arrived home and I said "we're home!" But he wanted to say that.

Being two is hard, man.

(Thanks to this blog for making this crazy behavior more entertaining than exasperating!)

Sunday, September 21, 2014

The Changing Face of Arthritis

October 2012; OZL 4 months old

April 2013; OZL 11 months old

 March 2014; OZL 22 months; 22 weeks pregnant

 July 2014; OZL 2 years old; 38 weeks pregnant

 September 2014; OZL 2 years old; CZL 8 weeks old

Monday, September 15, 2014

The RA Pregnancy Chronicles: Birth Positions

NOTE: As you can see from this post, RheumatoidArthritis.net is a little bit behind reality in publishing my pregnancy stories. So now you can go back in time and read about how I was feeling towards the end of my pregnancy! ~;o)

The RA Pregnancy Chronicles is a series of posts that share my experiences being pregnant while living with RA. This post was written during Week 34 of my second pregnancy.

The birth instructor kept talking about “using what nature provides” to make the birth process easier, and I couldn’t stop thinking about how unfair it was that nature had provided me with a bunch of inflamed joints and the ability to get fatigued more easily than other women, which wasn’t going to make the birth process any easier! 

Friday, September 12, 2014

What Can We Learn From the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge?

Given that everybody views things from their own, personal perspective, I find myself wondering what the arthritis community might be able to learn from the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge?

Tuesday, September 9, 2014

New Study Brings Hope: Scientists Discover How to “Switch Off” Autoimmune Diseases

Scientists have made an important breakthrough in the fight against debilitating autoimmune diseases by revealing how to stop immune system cells from attacking healthy body tissue.

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

Introducing CZL!

Life with two boys has been more than a bit crazy - which is why it has taken me a full 5 weeks to get to this post! 

I want to introduce CZL, who was born via c-section on July 29, 2014. He was 7lbs 5oz and 20 inches long. CZL is doing great and OZL has adjusted amazingly to life as a big brother. Unfortunately I am already struggling with some RA flares, but we are all hanging in there. 

I promise some more updates soon! In the meantime, here are some pictures of our newly expanded family!