Meet Daniel, a 16 year old from Sunderland, who is currently going through the process of getting a Rheumatoid Arthritis diagnosis.
1) Introduce yourself – Who are you, where are you from and a bit about yourself.
Hiya, my name is Daniel and I’m 16 years old from the North East of England (Sunderland). I’m an aspiring Veterinarian Nurse and I am four months away from my GCSE’s. In my spare time I like photography (one of the subjects I am doing at GCSE) and I’m an addict of RuPaul’s Drag Race!
2) What illness/condition/disability do you have? When did your symptoms start? And what were they?
Unfortunately I’m still going through the long, long process of a diagnosis, but what I am confident to say is I have is RA (Rheumatoid Arthritis). My rheumatology appointment is very soon though! The symptoms started around one and half years ago , my bowling coach originally noticed how I don’t bend my knee when bowling and how I will often limp when walking. After that the joint pain started coming constantly and it was hard to even lift my arm. Also there were many symptoms that I had but never associated it with RA, like dry eyes and pain in shoulder when breathing.
3) What was it like getting a diagnosis? Were doctors good/bad? Were you taken seriously? Did it take a long time?
As I have said before I am still going through the process but overall the doctors have been a mix and match of good and bad. The first doctor I saw asked one question “Do your joints click?”, to which I replied yes. Then after me telling him extensively every part of my body that I had pain in, he decided to only check my right knee and wrote it off as Osgood Schlatter disease. The second doctor still only decided to check my knee and gave me a sheet of exercises. Luckily I got a phone appointment and actually got referred to a physiotherapist who was my saviour! He checked absolutely everything and after one appointment he referred me straight to a Rheumatologist on the 1st February! Overall it has been from October 2017- now.
Editors note: since answering these questions, Daniel has had a Rheumatology appointment, he is waiting to hear back about bloods and the next steps moving forward.
4) Had you heard of your illness/condition/disability before you were diagnosed?
I had heard of arthritis before as a lot of my family have it, but never knew how many types there were! I always thought that there was just the arthritis that older people would get and now I think about what a fool I was then!
5) How did you feel when you were told your diagnosis?
Being told by my physiotherapist that it looked like RA was honestly a bittersweet moment. I was so happy that someone had recognised it but I had the realisation of how this was quite serious. Overwall Im still happy that someone has mentioned it!
6) What treatment did you have? Were there any problems? Did it help?
Currently I’m taking nothing but hopefully that will change I am at the rheumatologist! I do sometimes take Co-drydamol but it never really fully relieves the pain.
7) Did family/friends/colleagues take it seriously? Did they support you?
I’m lucky to have an amazing group of friends that understand my limitations and how hard this all is for me, they all make my day when I see them! My family are overall suportive but my Mother seems to not want to believe that I might actually have something. I’m not sure why and it really puzzles me. My school do not know about this yet and I’m waiting until I have got a proper diagnosis.
8) How does your illness/condition/disability affect your life?
My daily life is quite complicated. I am actually quite lucky because I move around a lot in my sleep which decreases the stiffness in the morning. Throughout the day if I’m at school it’s horrible having to sit in one position for an hour at a time with only 2 breaks. If it’s a weekend however it’s usually pretty good, I go out as much as possible to avoid the horrible stiffness, and seeing my friends helps stop me burying myself into depression when left alone.
9) What is something you wish people knew about it?
I wish people knew what this condition really is about, it’s not just something an old person can get, but young people get it as well! Many times I have thought to myself that this should be broadcasted to the world as it’s a horrible thing to go through. Also the fact that people sometimes can’t go to work because of their illness needs to be more accepted!
10) Anything else you’d like to share about it or your experience?
If you are reading this and suspect that you have a chronic illness, please go to your GP! For the people who have been diagnosed remember that you are not alone, Arthritis does not discriminate.
