Let's Move Together!
Hello, Internet!
This is my youngest sister. She'll be twenty in June. And as some of you know, she's had rheumatoid arthritis since she was sixteen.
It's been very difficult on her. The disease is painful and often debilitating. She used to dance, and with the arthritis attacking her joints, it made it hard for her to move. She's had to miss classes for appointments with her rheumatologists, for MRIs, for surgeries on fingers bowed by the arthritis, for medication.
The medication is very powerful and isn't really meant to treat juvenile patients. We don't know what side effects it might have on her. We already know she developed asthma because of one treatment. She had to learn how to give herself injections. She's currently on medicines that are used in chemotherapy. Once a month she goes to a hospital in Boston, to a chemo ward, to get drugs pumped into her. The drugs make her nauseous. They make her hair fall out in clumps. None of the combinations of drugs she's tried so far has been able to get her arthritis under control.
Since she was diagnosed with arthrits, my sister's become very involved in the Arthritis Foundation, and so has the rest of the family. They sponsor Arthritis Walks all across the country, and we've participated in the South Shore Arthritis Walk for several years. Last year, my sister was the Junior Ambassador for the Walk. This year, my dad's on the planning board.
My husband and I will be joining Christy's Crusaders and the rest of the South Shore Arthritis Walk on May 15th, and while you don't have to give, I'd like you to at least be aware. Arthritis has no cure. It's not an old people's disease. We've met children half my sister's age who go through the same pain, the same frustration. My sister's one of the bravest people I know, and I'm proud to walk with her.
If you would like to make a donation, you can do so here, on our team donor page. All proceeds go to funding arthritis research, in the hopes that one day we'll find a cure.
If you live in the Plymouth area, you can join us! Join our team, walk on your own, or even just come out and support everyone walking for a cure. You can join up with Christy's Crusaders here, or if you just want a little more information about the event, the main page is here.
Someday, we'll beat this thing. In the meantime, my sister's going to school to get her nursing degree, so she can help kids just like her.
Thanks for reading.
Christy's Crusaders, Arthritis Walk 2010
This is my youngest sister. She'll be twenty in June. And as some of you know, she's had rheumatoid arthritis since she was sixteen.
It's been very difficult on her. The disease is painful and often debilitating. She used to dance, and with the arthritis attacking her joints, it made it hard for her to move. She's had to miss classes for appointments with her rheumatologists, for MRIs, for surgeries on fingers bowed by the arthritis, for medication.
The medication is very powerful and isn't really meant to treat juvenile patients. We don't know what side effects it might have on her. We already know she developed asthma because of one treatment. She had to learn how to give herself injections. She's currently on medicines that are used in chemotherapy. Once a month she goes to a hospital in Boston, to a chemo ward, to get drugs pumped into her. The drugs make her nauseous. They make her hair fall out in clumps. None of the combinations of drugs she's tried so far has been able to get her arthritis under control.
Since she was diagnosed with arthrits, my sister's become very involved in the Arthritis Foundation, and so has the rest of the family. They sponsor Arthritis Walks all across the country, and we've participated in the South Shore Arthritis Walk for several years. Last year, my sister was the Junior Ambassador for the Walk. This year, my dad's on the planning board.
My husband and I will be joining Christy's Crusaders and the rest of the South Shore Arthritis Walk on May 15th, and while you don't have to give, I'd like you to at least be aware. Arthritis has no cure. It's not an old people's disease. We've met children half my sister's age who go through the same pain, the same frustration. My sister's one of the bravest people I know, and I'm proud to walk with her.
If you would like to make a donation, you can do so here, on our team donor page. All proceeds go to funding arthritis research, in the hopes that one day we'll find a cure.
If you live in the Plymouth area, you can join us! Join our team, walk on your own, or even just come out and support everyone walking for a cure. You can join up with Christy's Crusaders here, or if you just want a little more information about the event, the main page is here.
Someday, we'll beat this thing. In the meantime, my sister's going to school to get her nursing degree, so she can help kids just like her.
Thanks for reading.
Christy's Crusaders, Arthritis Walk 2010