Rheumatoid Awareness Day

For most of the world, when they think of February 2nd, they think of Ground Hog's Day. But for me, today is Rheumatoid Awareness Day. When I was diagnosed with this disease, I knew next to nothing about it and I did not know anyone in my age group that had been diagnosed with the disease, so it is my hope that by sharing my experience with RA, I will raise some awareness and help others achieve an early diagnosis, which is the key to effective treatment of this chronic disease.

Since I've only had this disease for 2.5 years, I'm still learning how to talk about the disease with authority, but one area I can speak with confidence about is the diagnosis process. When I started to deal with the symptoms of RA in May of 2013, I consulted Dr. Google (like many of us do) and early on I saw that I had some of the symptoms of RA. However, the information I found online indicated that it typically affects women after age 40. I was 32 at the time and thought, "this couldn't be happening to me - I'm too young."  So I pushed aside the chance of an RA diagnosis. 

Then when I was home in August of 2013, I was in so much pain that my dad had to carry my suitcase upstairs for me because I could not grasp the handle. And my mom saw me cringing as I walked down the stairs in the morning due to the pain in my feet.  And my sister-in-law's ears pricked up when I commented about how the swelling in my hand had mysteriously moved from one hand to the other. My mom and sister-in-law both expressed concerns that I was exhibiting RA symptoms and strongly encouraged me to go back to the doctor again and demand that they get to the bottom of what was causing my pain and swelling. 

So when I got back to Charlotte, I made yet another appointment with my primary care physician and told her that something did not seem right. I had seen her several times over the course of the summer but she had diagnosed my pain and swelling as tendinitis. Ultimately, I was diagnosed with RA after my blood work was reviewed and I was physically evaluated by a Rheumatologist.

It's not a coincidence that Rheuamtoid Awareness Day falls on Groundhog's day. As the founder of the Rheumatoid Patient Foundation says: "(You can) compare disease onset to the moment the groundhog comes out of his hole to look for his shadow. It's impossible to predict how aggressive the disease will be or whether treatments will be effective. The six weeks that the groundhog forecasts correspond to the short window of opportunity for people with rheumatoid disease to get early diagnosis and treatment, which has been shown to be a crucial component of positive outcome."

While I hope that none of my readers are impacted by this disease, my hope is that by sharing my symptoms and experience with this disease, it will raise the awareness and help someone else get diagnosed during that short window of opportunity so that they, too, can effectively manage their disease as I have been able to.

To learn more about RA and read others Rheumatoid Awareness Day (RAD) post, check out the carnival of RAD carnival on RA Warrior's site.