This Winter is Rough on the Joints!...I like winter, with Christmas celebrations, the arrival of a New year and fresh perspectives. I feel efficient as the season evolves; these months are productive for me. Now the...Reactions0reactionsComments2 comments
What My Days Look Like Living With AS: Part 2...Editor's note: You can read about the first part of Katie's day with AS here. It’s now about 8 AM. I pull into the driveway and put the car in...Reactions0reactionsComments1 comments
Mornings with Axial Spondyloarthritis: Waking Up in Pain...I never was an early riser. As a teenager, I could easily sleep til noon on the weekends without concern that I was missing something and, more importantly, without being...Reactions0reactionsComments0 comments
How AS Saved My Mental Health...I was in a pretty dark place mentally just prior to my AS diagnosis. I was living in China and between jobs while I was dealing with some visa issues...Reactions0reactionsComments12 comments
How to be Gentle with Yourself...It's been a whirlwind of a year. It's February 2021, and goodness knows we've all been through a lot. For my family, we've had our fair share of stressors and...Reactions0reactionsComments1 comments
My AS, Five Years From Diagnosis...Unlike many stories that I’ve read, I do not remember the day I was diagnosed. Not really. That period of my life was one big blur. I was stressed, studying...Reactions0reactionsComments3 comments
Identity Crisis After Diagnosis...Our identity is what makes each of us unique. Whether it’s our outward appearance, personality, or even our last names, one’s identity is what makes us who we are as...Reactions0reactionsComments2 comments
Chronic Illness And Sensory Overstimulation...Inspired by a post by The Unchargeables, an Instagram account dedicated to those of us with chronic illness, I was thinking about the feeling of overstimulation (or sensory overload) —...Reactions0reactionsComments2 comments
The Spirituality Of Illness...I remember the first time I prayed in a long time; I was in my mid-20s and I was dealing with a year of uveitis flare-ups, I had been through...Reactions0reactionsComments0 comments
How Being Chronically Ill Affects My Relationship...When I first met my fiancé, I had already been in remission for seven years. I explained to him early on about my illness, how it affected my life, and...Reactions0reactionsComments1 comments
How Does Your Experience Compare to That of Others Living with AS In America?...In 2020, 787 people living with ankylosing spondylitis took our online Spondyloarthritis In America Survey. We also got information from people living with: Each year, we learn so much about...Reactions0reactionsComments1 comments
Support Your Body Through The Winter...Winter: a challenging season for so many of us with chronic conditions like AxSpA. The short days and cold temperatures are felt deep down in the bones and joints. This...Reactions0reactionsComments4 comments
The Old Me Vs. The New Me...I feel like something a lot of us do is compare. We compare the things we used to do to the things we do now. We also compare what we...Reactions0reactionsComments0 comments
What My AxSpA Diet Looks Like...We hear a lot of conversations around well-being and diet, especially so in the chronic illness community. We often are told that diet will be the cure for AxSpA (or...Reactions0reactionsComments1 comments
When Asking "How Are You?" Does More Harm Than Good...Despite having lived with Keegan, my husband with AS, for over 8 years, I'm still learning a lot about how to communicate. I'm always one for checking in frequently throughout...Reactions0reactionsComments2 comments
How Do I Connect with Real People Living with AxSpA?...Navigating life with axial spondyloarthritis (AxSpA) can be scary or confusing, especially when going through it alone. After hearing those words “You have AxSpA/AS,” it is hard to know where...Reactions0reactionsComments0 comments
Getting Out of Bed with Spondyloarthritis, Part I...For years, my "good morning" attitude has been squashed by chronic illness. Enduring a restless night of pain associated with spondyloarthritis (SpA) makes it much more difficult for me to...Reactions0reactionsComments2 comments
A Confession: Things Are Hard...When I get dark, I get really dark — but I don’t think there’s anything wrong with confessing it. In fact, why keep it in — why let the engine...Reactions0reactionsComments5 comments
Beginner's Tips for Your Rheumatologist Visits...Over the past few years, my mom has dealt with a few chronic health conditions (she's actually in the process of determining if she has a form of AxSpA herself)...Reactions0reactionsComments2 comments
Self-Care with a Chronic Illness...I never truly partook in self-care until I became sick. Now, it’s probably one of the most important things I do for myself. Since I’ve had AS, I’ve had to...Reactions0reactionsComments2 comments