Help millions of people live with less pain and fund groundbreaking research to discover a cure for this devastating disease.
JA Mom Urges Families to Join a JA Connect Group
Submitted by Leanna Precup My name is Leanna Precup. I am a third-generation psoriatic arthritis (PsA) patient and the mother of an incredible young lady who also has PsA. I live in the Chicago suburbs and am a “medically retired” ER/critical care nurse with specialty areas of trauma and forensics. I have always been one to think on my feet and change course as the tide rolls in. Since being unable to work fulltime, I have focused on what I can do to continue to make a difference. We are part of a rescue group that fosters dogs left in kill shelters. ...more
COVID-19: One Year Later
By Julie Eller, Co-host of the Live Yes! With Arthritis Podcast Rebecca Gillett and I just recorded a new episode for the Live Yes! With Arthritis podcast – reflecting on all the time that has passed and all the new things we now know about COVID-19 and arthritis. It is wild to think about how much has changed in a year. Just 12 months ago, I was someone who relaxed on the weekends by eating lunch in a bustling restaurant with loud friends, recapping a busy work week where I bounced from meeting to meeting all over Washington, DC – perhaps even ...more
A Message of Love for Galentine’s Day
By Cassandra Marcella Metzger My parents are dead. I have no children. I am not married or, at the moment, dating anyone. Chronic pain from fibromyalgia is my constant companion. Why go on? I mean, really — why continue struggling? For whom am I persevering? My life often feels so gripped by the vise of pain, and at times I don’t feel I have much to offer anyone. And what on earth is there to celebrate on ’Valentine’s Day? Just keep my head down and hold my breath until all this lovey-dovey stuff blows over, right? Wrong! Cassandra and her lifelong friend Chantal Long before ...more
I Hate Arthritis. But I Love Someone Who Has It.
By Alex Brightman If you had told me 10 years ago that part of my life would be driving my wife to a doctor in Mineola, Long Island, once a month because of her arthritis, my very first thought would be… “Someone wanted to marry me? Awesome!” My wife has spondyloarthritis. It’s a disease that causes inflammation of the joints. At its mildest, it’s irritating or even itchy. At its worst, she’s described it as “a million tiny fists punching me all at once.” There’s no real cure for what she has, but there are treatments that help with the pain, stiffness, and stress ...more
Deb Constien: 2021 Walk to Cure Arthritis National Honoree
“Everyone needs to keep rallying around this flagship event and get involved, but in a different and safe way.” The Arthritis Foundation is proud to announce Deb Constien of Madison, Wisconsin, as the 2021 Walk to Cure Arthritis National Honoree. Deb has been a mover and shaker for the arthritis community for over 15 years. She first got involved through her local Walk event. “My husband Tim and son Jacob would show their support by heading out there with me year after year,” she recalls. “The Arthritis Foundation has become like a second family for me. The connections you make with other ...more
Medical Cannabis & Arthritis
Is it right for you? Where do you start? By Rebecca Gillett, MS OTR/L, Live Yes! With Arthritis co-host and arthritis patient Finding treatments to help alleviate the chronic pain of arthritis can be challenging, at best. It can be overwhelming to find treatments and medications to alleviate pain that don’t cause other issues. When you have lived with chronic pain for years, you know there is not a one-size-fits-all fix for the various aches and pains you experience. So perhaps you have considered turning to medical cannabis products containing CBD (cannabidiol) and/or THC (tetrahydrocannabinol, the chemical that produces a “high”) to treat your arthritis symptoms. ...more
January 2021 Arthritis News Roundup
The Arthritis Foundation is your trusted source for information, and we’re staying on top of the latest arthritis-related news that could affect you. Here’s a wrap-up of the headlines from this past month. Travel During COVID-19 Pandemic The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has provided some updates to its guidelines related to travel during the COVID-19 pandemic. Read more. If you must travel, follow a few travel safety precautions to help stay healthy when traveling with arthritis. Are Latinos with Rheumatic Diseases at Higher Risk for COVID-19? Rates of COVID-19 in Latinos with rheumatic disease is high, especially for those who are obese, according ...more
2020 Evening of Honors Highlights:
Recognizing Special Arthritis Foundation Volunteers in 2021 The Arthritis Foundation’s Conference of Champions — an annual gathering of volunteers, partners and other supporters — was cancelled in 2020 due to the pandemic. But we thought it was very important to recognize some phenomenal achievements in the past year, despite the challenges everyone faced. So, belatedly, we held our 2020 Evening of Honors ceremony on Jan. 15, 2021 — live, virtually, online. Our dear friend Pete Scalia hosted the event, where we highlighted several major accomplishments, like exceeding our fundraising goal despite the pandemic; continuing to provide the resources people with arthritis need; ...more