Kelly O'Neill, Author at Rheumatoid Arthritis Warrior | Page 23 of 118

Relax: Survival Mode and Our Intrinsic Value

June 11, 2013May 14, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 57 Comments Encouragement for living with RA, Patience & living with RA

The past few weeks have been full of chaos and minor crises. Not enough to stress me out, but enough to keep my days overfull with no strength left at the end to write – only sleep. I read last month of a study of mothers of more than three children1, that they are less...Continue reading 57 Comments » Read more

Happy Birthday RAW! The Day I Could No Longer Stay Silent

May 17, 2013April 20, 2019 Kelly O'Neill 35 Comments Comprehensive RA Care, Cricoarytenoid arthritis, e-patient

This week the British Medical Journal published my article which they titled: Doctors’ understanding of rheumatoid disease does not align with patients’ experiences. But first, today is a very special day. Today begins year five of RAW Four years ago today, RA Warrior was born. I’d been studying, writing, and talking to patients for a few months....Continue reading 35 Comments » Read more

Planning Pregnancy with Rheumatoid Arthritis / Disease

May 15, 2013May 14, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 39 Comments Living with chronic illness like RA, Parenting with RA, Rheumatoid Arthritis and pregnancy

How Rheumatoid Disease affects pregnancy planning Pregnancy planning is a common challenge for people diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis. Concerns include infertility, disease activity, pain control, and possible disability, which can interfere with caring for a child. Valuable resources include clinical studies and other publications, and the practical stories of other patients. While there is no clear...Continue reading 39 Comments » Read more

Efficacy of Xeljanz, Biologics, & DMARDs in Rheumatoid Disease

May 13, 2013May 14, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 47 Comments Biologics for RA, Methotrexate, Rheumatoid arthritis treatment, XELJANZ-tofacitinib-JAK

Why should I feel like I failed? I’m not alone We probably agree it’s unfair to say, “patients fail treatments” instead of the reverse, but there is still disappointment. I was optimistic that my Rheumatoid disease would respond to Xeljanz, the new oral DMARD (disease modifying anti-rheumatic drug) from Pfizer. Unfortunately, my joint stiffness and inflammation,...Continue reading 47 Comments » Read more

Ciprofloxacin / Fluoroquinolone Tendon Dangers with Rheumatoid Arthritis

May 10, 2013May 14, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 37 Comments Preventive Care with Rheumatoid Arthritis, Side effects for RA medicine

My brief story about ciprofloxacin and Rheumatoid Arthritis I got a kidney infection shortly after starting Enbrel. It was Good Friday 2009. My kidney hurt and fever spiked to 104.5, after 3 days of UTI. Before then, I’d only had a minor UTI with pregnancy. This is when my GP got the nickname “Good GP” because...Continue reading 37 Comments » Read more

Livedo reticularis diagnosis – she knelt next to me with a medical textbook

May 9, 2013May 14, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 25 Comments Professional patient, Rheumatoid Arthritis symptoms, Talking to doctors

See PART 1 to learn more on Livedo reticularis in rheumatoid disease Last week was one of those professional patient weeks, with three doctor’s appointments and a lab visit. “Professional patient” is not something I happily say. It started out in 2009 as a tongue in cheek way to make the most of an annoying phenomenon –...Continue reading 25 Comments » Read more

Words of Help From a Friend We’ve Never Met – Until We Do

May 2, 2013May 14, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 2 Comments e-patient, Living with chronic illness like RA

Isn’t life full of special coincidences? Some even call them “God-incidences.” Circumstances show know that life is not all random, but the right words are often there at the right time – no matter when they were written. A couple of special coincidences occurred in February when I was in Washington. As my friend Leslie and...Continue reading 2 Comments » Read more