Where to Start...

I realize it's been a long time since my last post. It's not because I haven't had anything to write about. I was just trying to decide if I actually wanted to share what's been going on lately. So, here goes...

I was recently diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis. Let me give you a little background about my health...I am (or was) one of the healthiest people I know. I rarely get sick, and I mean very rarely. I've never really been in any pain (until now). I've never even broken a bone. So all of this came as quite a shock. After I had Amara, I felt great. Even the whole birthing process was amazing and something that I definitely want to do again. About 5 months ago, however, I started having these awful pains. I can't even explain it. It started with just a feeling of soreness, like that feeling you get when you've helped someone move or have done a lot of house painting. I didn't really notice the soreness until the weather started to get cold, I guess in late fall. I even mentioned to my best friend that if I ever was to know what arthritis felt like, this is what I would think it is. Well, the months went by, and I just kept getting more and more sore. Finally, it got to the point where I would be in so much pain that I couldn't even function. Even a blanket was too heavy to pull up over myself at night. I would wake up in the middle of the night in so much pain that Frank would have to rub my arms in order to be able to help me to get some small amount of rest. I was waking up every hour from pain. I could barely walk in the mornings, let alone go down our stairs. Every step felt like my bones were just going to snap into a million pieces. I finally got an appointment with the doctor and he did a blood test. Did you realize that they can actually test your blood to see if you have arthritis? It was surprising to me that they could actually do that, but nice to know that we could have a definitive answer. So, my test came back positive, and my doctor referred me to a rheumatologist. And so begins life with RA.

I am also one who does NOT like medicine. Having worked in the health insurance industry for a few years, I see what medicine and its side effects do to people. I do agree that medicine does have its place, but I feel that it should be closely monitored by those taking it. People need to take more responsibility for educating themselves on what medicines they are taking and the consequences of those, especially if they are on multiple meds. Anyway, my rheumatologist prescribed a VERY mild medication, so mild that it takes up to 3 months to even start working. We had to go this route because I am still nursing and would like to in the future have other children. To treat the RA with anything stronger would not be safe for Amara or for me in the event that I become pregnant in the next few years. So, I am still dealing with a lot of pain while waiting for this medication to work.

In the meantime, I am trying to beat this with natural things. I am taking an all natural supplement that has helped many people with RA to beat the symptoms and come off of all medicine. Frank is also putting his juicer to use by making us some carrot/apple juice. We are going to be experimenting with some other veggies as well because I'm not a big fan of the apple. Believe it or not, I'd rather have straight carrot juice. By the way, did you realize how much of a super food carrots actually are? They are amazingly good for you...and delish!

So, this was just a spout to kind of get you up to speed. Many details were left out, but I'll try to be consistent with updates. Maybe this will even help someone else that might be dealing with the same thing.

I am just praying for complete healing. Doctors will tell you that RA is an auto-immune disease and will never go away, but I say that my God is bigger than that and he can completely heal me. Please pray for complete healing and soon so that I can better take care of my precious little girl and get back to normal for my supportive and patient husband.