March Madness

Twas the season for basketball... and oak allergies…

I had just visited my doctor in the end of February for my 3 month check-up when mid-March pollens during spring break began to take a huge toll on my body. I was taking Benadryl and Sudafed round the clock for itchy eyes and runny, congested nose and of course, my fast-acting inhaler always accompanied me in my purse for any troubled breathing.

My Still's rash

What I didn’t expect was the onslaught of health problems that would follow in addition to the allergy war… My left elbow became increasing immobile, bent at almost a 45 degree angle. I also began to feel my right elbow becoming tighter with less mobility. If I wasn’t already scared enough, the dreaded still’s disease rash appeared on my right thigh in a patch. Sure I have had some difficulties with stiffness, aching and swollenness in the past 5 years but after I started taking Kineret, I hadn’t seen the rash since. I was really worried. This was a full on flare.

After a few trips to the doctor, blood tests and significantly limited mobility in my elbows (aka having difficulty dressing, doing my hair and lifting/moving things) we decided it was best to go back to every day Kineret injections ( I had been only taking them every week) and also deal with these specific swollen joints. So in mid-April I had steroid shots in both my elbows. While that seemed to solve things then… this Memorial Day weekend has proven that it did not. My left elbow has become swollen again and I joked with my family that I might just be Barbie for the rest of my life! And of course, that can’t be too bad, can it?! Haha

I believe the next step, after plenty of time researching, is talk with my doctor about Enbrel. While it was first suggested that I take Humira, I have not found significant positive results to want to subject myself to those shots first. Until I figure it out though, I’ll keep yall posted!

Healthy lifestyle Update: I really am loving the Skinny Rules and have truly felt less hungry and more full!! Crossing my fingers that some weight comes off and I’ll be more prepared for that summer wedding I have to go to!

Week Numero Uno!

So this week, I’ve been trying to be much more attentive to my health. Not only because I should be but mainly because I want to keep up with this blog! Haha

This week I’ve been seriously considering what step to take next with my still’s disease. For the past five years I have been taking a medication called Kineret and it has worked wonderfully! As my doctors have continued to tell me, not everything is known about still’s disease and therefore some things can be experimented with. In the beginning, I gave myself the preloaded injection needles everyday (which, like many other people taking injections will tell you, is NO fun). While you first have to get over puncturing your own skin, you also have to get over the burning sensation that follows… there may or may not have been significant tears over the years. Back to the experimentation though, I eventually weaned myself down to one shot every three weeks! (Practically nothing)

I was living the life with relatively no problems with still’s/arthritis!! This was great for me at the time; a college student who got to study abroad, drink, on average, 4 times a month, exercise occasionally and eat whatever I wanted… Of course, I would definitely say this contributed to the overall weight gain of 20 pounds in college. BOO. My point is though that I wasn’t conscious about truly taking care of my body. I ignored my still’s because it didn’t present itself and I wanted to be normal.

I am “normal”. But what is normal for me is probably not normal for everyone! Now I’m back to one shot everyday (I’ll explain in the next blog post why!) and living my life as normally as possible!  I’m trying to live a healthy lifestyle with regular and considerable exercise and (as of Saturday) new Skinny Rules… I’m a big fan of the transformational show The Biggest Loser and one of the trainers, Bob Harper, wrote this book!

Skinny Rule 1: Drink a Large Glass of Water Before Every Meal – No Excuses!

My First Try at Blogging

After spotting a blotchy red rash on the underside of my forearm yesterday at work, I decided that I need to step up my health game and REALLY put in the time and effort my body deserves.

After spending a couple hours scouring the internet for information on Still’s and finding (literally) a couple of blogs, I decided that us Still’s patients could use another voice!

Hi! My name is Lindsey and I’m 22 years old and have been diagnosed with Still’s disease for 5 years. Life’s been hectic for me lately: adjusting to living on my own after graduating college in May 2011 and starting a part-time job while also being a full-time Master’s student. Having Still’s on top of that, hasn’t been the most helpful…

My hope is that those of you with Still’s disease can read my blog and find comfort knowing that there is someone out there just like you!!  If you’re a friend, family member or curious reader, I hope you will find some insight in the life of one Still’s patient living in Texas.