an introduction

Rising Above Rheumatoid Arthritis - quite an inspiring title, no? I decided to start this blog for a few different reasons. I'd like to chronicle these events for my own sake - I actually wish I had started earlier. I'd like to offer up empathy and support for others going through the same things I am. I'd also like to propose that, unlike what many doctors say, Rheumatoid Arthritis and many other illnesses like it are not permanent and people diagnosed with them do not have to live the rest of their lives with them. I believe that there is a way to heal the body, though, quite honestly, I'm still seeking this way out myself.

My name's Emily; I'm a twenty-year-old student and wife, and also a follower of Yeshua the Messiah. I live in a small town in Eastern Oregon, but I grew up in Colorado. My husband and I are interested in starting a church of our own - probably not for a couple of years, since we have a lot to learn!

Here is a short timeline of my RA:

May 2007: My feet started swelling. I visited a doctor, but he thought it was just bruised. Ibuprofen made the swelling go away, so I didn't think much of it. My feet were swollen through the summer, but I didn't think much of it. I blamed it on the hot weather (I was currently in the Marshall Islands)

September 2007: The middle finger on one of my hands started swelling. A doctor prescribed me Diclofenac and told me to report back if it got worse. It did, but the x-rays showed nothing.

December 2007: By now, my feet and hands were almost always swollen and aching. I couldn't open jars or close my fists. (It was also around this time that I broke out with a really bad rash in response to some baby powder. Not sure if they're related at all.) I visited a foot doctor and he examined my swollen feet. He told me to soak my feet in hot water for two minutes, then in ice cold for two, then in hot for another two, then finish off in the cold water for one minute. It brought short-term relief. He also said I had high arches and should get some shoes that supported my feet well. Meanwhile, Chris (my fiance at the time) did some research and found a disease called Rheumatoid Arthritis that had similar side effects. I remember not wanting to have it.

January 2008: After a blood test and a Rheumatoid Factor at 288, I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis. My doctor got me an appointment with a Rheumatologist in April. Until then, I would just have to wait and take Naproxen.

The next few months were probably the worst. My knees and wrists decided to join in on the fun. My shoulder joints weren't swollen, but they were very sore, making it difficult to even take my shirt off (tmi? o.O). I began walking with a limp, and the engagement ring that had at one time been almost too big made an imprint on my swollen ring finger.

April 2008: My fiance didn't want to wait until the appointment to find relief, so he started looking around online. We knew the common reasons for Rheumatoid Arthritis: an immune system turns on itself and begins attacking its own joints.

The website that sparked our interest into an alternative was this one. It was the site of Joe Hackett, a man who claimed he had once had a Rheumatoid Factor of 767, but through changing his diet, examining problems that lie in his intestinal lining, learning relaxing techniques, and also exercise, his RA was currently in remission. It led us on a huge adventure to a place where people said that RA was not an 'overactive immune system' but a disease that could be healed.

I'll continue in the next post, because I'm sure it will take a while to talk about what's been happening since last April!