Articles

Do you remember the first question you asked when you were told you had AS? For me it was immediate - “Is there a cure?” I remember the kindly face...

You can read my article "Driving Difficulties with Ankylosing Spondylitis" to see the difficulties I had driving my Mini. My Mini Cooper was my first car, and oh I loved...

No matter how many times I’ve seen my rheumatologist, I always find these appointments a daunting experience. I feel nervous. Many thoughts run through my head: What if my condition...

I have never been a good breakfast eater. I am not a morning person and to be able to have a meal in the morning has always been a challenge...

Having AS has been one of the hardest things that has been placed on my path. I have come to believe that finding the lessons can make the pain hurt...

There. I’ve said it. Not out loud, of course, but on the page. Sex. It’s a great word when you think about it. It’s short (which can be a good...

I am sure other people worry about body image. It’s normal to worry just a little bit, right? But I wonder if others worry as much as I do. Is...

It’s been an anxious wait, since seeing my rheumatologist mid-July. I felt so confident leaving his office. Finally, felt listened to, that my pains needed some help. My pains had...

It has been more than a year since I started treating my ankylosing spondylitis with Humira. This treatment has been life-changing. Even though I still might get some rigidity or...

When I’m really down, I tend to turn toward writing. There’s something about putting pen to page, or fingers to keyboard, that alchemizes the experience of emotion. It gives it...

I started biologics in July of 2020, a nerve-wracking experience for me. I was on Cimzia for 3 months, I did not have a pleasant experience with Cimzia. I wrote articles about this that you can read. I...

Last Thursday I was lucky enough to get my third Pfizer vaccination to protect me from this pesky coronavirus that doesn’t seem to be leaving us anytime soon. This COVID...

With AxSpa we can experience brain fog, difficulty to stay focused, lack of attention, and short attention span. That is the kind of thing that strikes me the most with...

Do you ever struggle with remembering where you put things, forming complete thoughts, or even remembering what you were thinking about doing 2 minutes ago and now you’re standing in...

It’s raining again, I think to myself. I peek out the window and sure enough, there’s a downpour. I don’t need to see rain in the forecast, I can feel...

Shopping is not my favorite thing. It was kind of fun before arthritis, but these days it’s just something that I have to get done. It’s the classic trickster’s trap...

Right before Covid hit I had made the hard decision to apply for Ontario Disability (ODSP) and quit my job. I had been considering it for months as my symptoms...

One of the most frustrating things that happens when living with AS is the tendency to judge ourselves against our pre-diagnosis selves or others who live without AS. I have certainly...

I have always wanted to be a writer. Secretly. Secretly, because the world I grew up in didn’t have writers in it. Or writers didn’t come from or inhabit our...

I was supposed to get my third Covid vaccine on the 9th of October. I postponed it as I was feeling so unwell from an awful flare. This flare has been going...