Good Living with Rheumatoid Arthritis book review

Can this book cover claim be upheld? “Good Living with Rheumatoid Arthritis Is More Possible Now Than Ever Before!”

I’ve been putting off this book review post for months because I am afraid I’ll sound negative. Why do I feel like I am obligated to praise the book because it is published by the Arthritis Foundation? Is it a sin for a person living with Rheumatoid Arthritis to criticize the Arthritis Foundation?

Whoever wrote the cover certainly flattered the writers. I wish I agreed. Here is what they claim is inside:

Front cover: “Find the Tools You Need to Ease Pain, Reduce Joint Damage, Improve Mobility, Relieve Stress.”

Back cover: “In this book you’ll discover… Easy ways to improve your flexibility, reduce pain and stiffness, and manage stress.”

Here’s what I did not like about Good Living with Rheumatoid Arthritis:

The tone is impractical: I felt like the writers have not met anyone living with moderate to severe Rheumatoid Arthritis, a considerable percentage of RA’ers.
Some information is already outdated since science moves fast and the internet keeps up better than books can.
They gave too much print to the notion that Rheumatoid Arthritis pain is subjective and can be controlled by techniques like mental imagery and self hypnosis.
They presented an unrealistic view of exercise, even using the dreaded phrase “Use it or lose it.”
Have you ever heard of “rheumatoid personality”? Some doctors believe it is the source of Rheumatoid Arthritis pain, would you believe?
There’s more, but I want to keep this short. So, just one more thing: it’s printed on really heavy paper, so it’s too heavy to hold in our hands.

Here’s what I did like about Good Living with Rheumatoid Arthritis:

They expect doctors to talk to patients like real persons, even providing forms to prepare for appointments. However, they do not come with any guarantee of doctor cooperation.
They approve of the use of narcotics for Rheumatoid Arthritis pain which is not controlled in other ways. This has been a controversial topic over the years. Perhaps that is related to some of the concepts discussed in the last section. What is controversial about pain control? Nothing, if the alleged pain is seen as actual pain.
I infer that they envision RA’ers as managers of their own RA treatment programs. Although there is much resistance to this idea in the medical community also, it is the only legitimate basis to “Good living with Rheumatoid Arthritis.”
The book includes a few short vignettes from actual RA’ers. This is probably the best part. It is almost like getting a little page from a blog. They are more realistic. One nurse even tells how RA made her blind in one eye and affected the adjacent ear.

Of course, I also like the promises on the book cover. Too bad they could not really deliver on them. They should not feel bad about that: “Easy” answers for RA would be impossible to deliver. They do not exist. That is not the fault of the text writers. They just need to find more accurate cover designers.

All I can say is, I wouldn’t want to be a lawyer defending those cover claims in court.

Postblog, updated 2/2010:

This post raises a couple of interesting issues. The Arthritis Foundation emphasizes exercise for Rheumatoid Arthritis in this book and in every campaign. We have had some discussion of exercise with RA on the blog already. There are lots of comments on that hot topic on the links listed below if you want to join in.

Second, there is concern that the tone of the book and several statements in it do not reflect an understanding of what it’s like to live with RA. This is also true of this article from the Arthritis Foundation about hypochondria and chronic pain.

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 4th, 2009 at 7:00 am and is filed under Reality check. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.