Awareness Day!

Today, February 2nd, is Rheum Awareness day! As a small way to raise awareness, I changed by Facebook profile and cover pictures to show support. When people hear Rheumatoid Arthritis I think a common thought is "old people arthritis"- PC or not, I've heard responses like this. I don't blame anyone, because prior to my own diagnosis, I only had a vague notion of the disease. So, I encourage everyone to share little tidbits about our disease whenever possible today. I struggle with just how much to share (later post on that), but today especially, I will make an effort to raise awareness.


There's a push to identify Rheumatoid Arthritis as Rheumatoid Disease (RD) in order to better capture the seriousness of it. As I think more about this, I can definitely see the different implications the two terms bring up. Arthritis is a very common ailment for many people, so I can see how RA would be categorized as simple joint pain and stiffness. RD implies much more than that. Labels drive me crazy sometimes...funny for someone in the Mental Health profession...but, unfortunately sometimes that is the only way to push forward an agenda. For RA/RD, the agenda (for me at least) should be one of awareness, understanding, research, treatment accessibility, and support.


Dealing with this disease is complicated and it's important for others to realize that, not for pity or attention, but for empathy and validation. Many would say that you only need your own validation in order to deal with something difficult. However, that's in an ideal world. In the real world, in my world, empathy and validation provide the type of support that keeps me pushing through. The type of support that lets me know I can live a full life, despite whatever struggles I may be experiencing.


Today, I hope everyone takes advantage of the impact awareness can have. Awareness is often the first step, so join me spreading some around!