Today my in-laws had a get together with the members of my FIL church he pastors. They came over to the in-laws, about 30 of them showed up.
Anyways...
Hubby's grandpa was talking about his childhood friend he drives around. Lizzie Mae... she has really bad joint damage from uncontrolled RA. She has no bones in her hands and her fingers are just limp and do not move.
Anyways... one of them asked me if that is what I had. FIL told all of his congergation that I had RA, when I first visited their church. So... they knew the name of my problem.
I told her yes. And then another one asked when I was DXed. I told her when I was 18 months old and she said so you were probably born with it. Then she asked "It that was arthritis does eats the bone and that is what you have?" I told her I had an auto-immune disease that my body attacked my joints. A couple of them had questions about how painful it was, what were some of my limitations, and what I was taking to control it and all. And most of them just felt sorry for me. But I felt I helped them to understand what RA was.
See... there I think I informed a group of people about RA.
Oh and I was sitting on the couch... and it is hard for me to get off in-laws couch because it is soo low to the ground, and I would rock back and forth and then grab the coffee table. Everyone in the room would watch me get off the couch everytime and just look like they felt sorry for me. So... I stopped getting up off the couch after about 5 times, just so they would stop looking at me like that.
Joonie, you did a very good thing! I think it is important for people to be informed about RA and other types of Arthritis and auto-immune diseases.
I really don't think most people understand just how destructive these diseases are. I don't think we want their sympathy as much as just to have them understand and not just think we're lazy. I think you younger ones have a little harder time with folks just not knowing the facts.
I think more people expect that kind of thing with those of us that are older.(By the way, what do you mean "they're in their 60's and probably won't remember anyway?
Anyway, keep up the good work. I bet you get a lot more understanding from a lot of people now.
Hugs,
Nini
Good for your father-in-law, Joonie. Just wanted to say, though, that not all folks in their 60s have lost their snap.
Janis
Joonie - Do you think you were born with it, or does your mom? I always wonder about that with my daughter. I had a post-partum infection after she was born (rare when you haven't had a c-section). The way I felt was like I hear SO MANY women describe their RA onset. But they found an infection in me and I completely recovered. Did she get it from me, I wonder? Or did nursing her while they pumped me full of antibiotics (which I was told was safe, maybe even good for her) cause her immune system to freakout?Joonie, I'm glad you were able to share your story with the group. People need to be educated and it was good that you took advantage of the situation and answered their questions. It sounds like you FIL is proud of you for what you've accomplismed
IslandWoman, still got my snap at 62. Lindy
Suzeanne - Not really sure if I have had it since birth, but by the way my mom talks, I have always had this limp since I was able to walk about 8 months old. She never thought nothing of my limp until someone that worked in a children's hospital pointed it out to her and suggested she go get me checked out.
My mom blames herself for me having JRA, because she says I probably got it because she had me so late in life, she was 45 years old. But according to my half sister, our dad is the reason for arthritis. Both her and my brother has joint problems, and my sister says our dad had RA, but maybe she does not understand what exactly RA is? Do not really know for sure. But since telling my mom that my sister thinks dad is the reason for me having JRA, my mom no longer blames herself.
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To the rest who relied - I was just a jokin' about being 60 and forgetting
Oh and FIL he had already told his congergation about me, I think it was in attempts to get me to go to church again. Because my excuse before was that the old men and some old women would shake my hand and hurt me but them squeezing it. So, he told them about having RA and not to shake my hand
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