Talking to doctors Archives | Page 5 of 11 | Rheumatoid Arthritis Warrior

A Spoonful of Sugar from the Lab of Professor Rebecca Bader

April 19, 2011May 15, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 6 Comments e-patient, Research on Rheumatoid Arthritis, Talking to doctors

Katie Beth and I were on the road again this past week! We drove down to a Disney convention center to see the castles and other fantastic things like dreams come true… Mission of Bader Research Laboratory Rebecca Bader, Assistant Professor of Biomedical & Chemical Engineering at the Syracuse Biomaterials Institute of Syracuse University and her staff are...Continue reading 6 Comments » Read more

New Reading of the Nuclear Bone Scan: Credibility is Everything

March 31, 2011May 15, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 49 Comments Nuclear bone scan, Rheumatoid Arthritis test, Talking to doctors

Today, I got a gift. A friend obtained a second reading of my nuclear bone scan. The 4-page report was sent to me in a PDF as an authorized second opinion. The radiologist did not agree with the findings of the first report and the differences were not subtle. Instead of quoting it at length, I’ve...Continue reading 49 Comments » Read more

My Doctor Fired Me

March 25, 2011May 15, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 152 Comments e-patient, Nuclear bone scan, Talking to doctors

Several times I’ve had to be dragged kicking and screaming to medical treatment. No one else did it for me; so I had to learn to drag myself. It was a long and harsh journey, but I determined to be an empowered patient and no longer an ostrich hoping that ignoring problems makes them go...Continue reading 152 Comments » Read more

Two Types of Rheumatoid Arthritis Medications

January 31, 2011May 15, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 23 Comments Rheumatoid arthritis treatment, Talking to doctors

Why talk about 2 types of Rheumatoid Arthritis medications? One of the first blog posts I ever wrote was about Rheumatoid Arthritis medications. I suggest that patients ask doctors about each medication: “How is this supposed to help me?” I wanted to make a clear distinction between medications for disease treatment and medications for relief of...Continue reading 23 Comments » Read more

Joint Examinations with Rheumatoid Arthritis

January 21, 2011May 15, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 51 Comments Measuring rheumatoid disease activity, Rheumatoid Arthritis test, Talking to doctors

Today, I had scheduled a special good news list. It has to wait until next week – I can tell you why then. Good things come to those who wait – at least my mom told me that – so I hope so. How about the uncomfortable topic of joint examinations? As I said yesterday, there are...Continue reading 51 Comments » Read more

Some Rheumatologists Don’t Understand How Much It Hurts

January 4, 2011May 15, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 55 Comments Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis, Pain Tolerance / RA Stoicism, Rheumatoid arthritis pain, Talking to doctors

Some rheumatologists say they don’t believe their patients It is one thing to act like women are catastrophizing when they claim that Rheumatoid Arthritis hurts so much. But it’s another thing when it is done to children. Unfortunately, I’m familiar with being disbelieved by doctors. But I’m still shocked that they do that to children. Over the...Continue reading 55 Comments » Read more

All I Want for Christmas Is My CRP

December 3, 2010May 15, 2018 Kelly O'Neill 35 Comments Blood test for RA/ Rheumatoid Disease, CRP, Research on Rheumatoid Arthritis, Rheumatoid Arthritis Clinical Trials, Talking to doctors

I thought I’d finally gotten out of Rheumatoid Arthritis / CRP purgatory, but I was wrong. I got an early Christmas present after I got back from the ACR meeting, I got a certified letter from my rheum doc. It said I couldn’t have any more Actemra infusions because my insurance company would not pay properly. It...Continue reading 35 Comments » Read more