Photograph Testimonial: Continuing to work with rheumatoid arthritis
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Claire's Testimonial
Continuing to work with rheumatiod arthritis
The disease started at the age of 33, quite young, with foot pain. I couldn’t find any shoes that would fit me anymore, I was in a lot of pain. It then spread to the upper limbs. It starts by the sensation pushing, sometimes upwards, sometimes downwards.
I consulted my doctor immediately but it took us a long time to reach a diagnosis. Medications were then put in place with a lot of effort but very little success. We operate on a trial and error basis, day by day.
I have always evolved in suffering, while wanting to be a fighter. I never wanted to stop working totally. I have taken many breaks in my career while wanting to keep one foot in the stirrup, have a professional life, contacts, a career, all combined with my family life.
I am now a young 62-year-old retiree, I have been suffering from the disease for about 30 years, but I no longer have a relapse. The chronic pains remain very present. I especially find the pain even worse in the morning as I feel very rusty. As the day progresses, the joints become a little more flexible and you feel better in the evening than in the morning.
From a social point of view, I was very fortunate to have worked in the field of special education. The human character and solidarity being much more present than in companies. This has been a tremendous support throughout my professional career.
This testimonial is part of the graduation project of Gaëlle Regnier, a student of photography at the Agnès Varda School of Photography and Visual Techniques in Brussels. She chose chronic pain as the theme of this photo report to highlight the patients and their struggle.
Beginning of the discussion - 1/7/19
Photograph Testimonial: Continuing to work with rheumatoid arthritis https://www.carenity.co.uk/forum/rheumatoid-arthritis/living-with-rheumatoid-arthritis/photograph-testimonial-continuing-to-work-with-deforming-polyarthritis-2670I am going to tag some members who may be interested in reading this testimonial :)
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A great way to illustrate the ups ,downs,hoops and hurdles of RA, I admire your philosophy in dealing with chronic pain.
@Hidden username thanks for the highlight of somone else's story. Very interesting to have understanding from work does help.
kind regards
Jillx
Thank you for the tag. People don't always realise how much RA affects work and I am now lucky to have a boss who understands what I go through and it does make all the difference, I was lucky to now get one a week off to have a recovery day as my job can be very stressful. I am glad you also managed to keep working and you're very strong for doing so.
Regards
Elisha
@Hidden username It makes such a difference to have a boss that understands...some people seem to think that we are faking our chronic illnesses and it is very demoralising :/
Well Done to you Claire, people do not understand how difficult it is. I'm pleased you have an understanding manager, they are a rarity.
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