| mel67 |
07-23-2006 10:47 AM |
Originally Posted by Debhope:
Melissa-Sorry to hear you have R. arthritis. Does it severely curtail your ability to exercize? BTW, your crochet hadiwork is marvelous!
Yep, it does. I'm only allowed to walk or swim. Some say "lucky duck", but not really. all you guys who work out will be nice and tone and tight, i'll just be smaller. I was diagnosed 1 1/2 years ago, and the mobility "ground" that i've lost just in the last year is amazing. there is no such thing as a pain free day. well, actually, the pain isn't too bad unless i'm having a flair up, otherwise its the stiffness. unlike osteo arthritis, RA effects every joint in the body, including my jaw. i cant sit for more than an hour without having to get up and move around and let everything "pop". otherwise, I'll need help getting up out of a chair. I can't carry anything that weighs more than about 4 pounds, or my elbows will give-way, and i'll drop whatever i'm carrying. going down stairs are not too bad, but going up is hard on my hips and knees. as soon as i get up every morning, i have to stand up straight out of bed, slowly put my weight on my feet and allow them to 'pop', before i can start walking. otherwise, the feet wont "be there" and i'll fall down. some days, i feel like a 90 year old woman, in a 39 year old body. i sound like breakfast cereal, snap-crackle-pop. The last time I had a flair up was in January, and I had to put my right arm in a sling for several days because the joint was so swollen, i couldn't put my arm down by my side without crying from the pain. and I do mean crying. this is the only thing i've ever experienced that, sometimes, can hurt as bad as having a baby. a major flair up can be excruciating. ok, enough whinning :)
thanks for checking out my projects! :) Crochet keeps me sane, and keeps the fork out of my mouth. and thankfully, my hands are the one thing that don't really hurt too much. but i know that could change, and it makes me VERY sad to know that someday, i may not be able to crochet anymore. If I can't hold a hook, you might as well shoot me...lol
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