Pants for pelvic pain, spring 2019
My post on pants for arthritis and bladder pain is still pretty popular, but at this point it’s probably a little outdated. I went shopping for spring clothes recently, so I can share what I found at Kohl’s! Unlike my other post, this post is only about women’s pants. It can be really hard to go shopping and find pants as someone with pelvic pain, whether it’s from arthritis, interstitial cystitis, endometriosis, or something else. Stiff, low waistbands are sure to make my hips ache and send pangs through my bladder. I don’t just want to wear leggings all the time, though! I actually had a bit of a crisis…
Enbrel Mini review: Easy, customizable injections
Pros: Easy to use, adjustable injection speeds, optional sounds, one-handed injectionsCons: It’s still an injection After months of fighting with my insurance company, I finally got my medicine and was able to try Enbrel Mini! It’s a bit like something out of a sci-fi movie—maybe one day all injections will be as easy as this. (The biomedical engineer in me is already thinking about what to design to make that happen. Hmm…) Humira helped me a lot for a while, but last fall I started having a lot more pain and fatigue, and my doctor suggested moving to Enbrel. Even though I’d had a bad experience with the Humira Pen…
Info checklist for flying with Humira or Enbrel
How to fly with Humira and Enbrel is my most popular post, but I know it can be a little long. Here are the most important points, summarized in a list. Packing info Humira, Enbrel, and x-ray scanners Going through security Documentation Safe travels! -Bri I love creating resources like this, but each one takes a lot of time and research. If this post helped you, consider supporting the site with a coffee! Thanks! <3
Is chest binding possible with arthritis?
Costochondritis, a condition where the cartilage of the rib cage gets inflamed, is already discussed as a side effect of wearing a chest binder. But what about when you have pre-existing costochondritis and want to chest bind? I’ve tried and failed to find advice for, or even a single mention of, people with arthritis or other chronic illnesses who want to bind their chests. Maybe I just haven’t found the right Reddit post. I haven’t really found a good solution for myself so far, but I can share the frustrations I’ve been through. Chest binding: A brief introduction Chest binding is the practice of someone making their chest appear flatter.…
Arthritic gaming
I looked up “video game arthritis” recently (or something similar). I’m not completely sure what I was looking for. Advice for how to keep gaming when it makes it hard to use your hands? Other people going through the same thing, so I don’t feel like the only one? Motivation to work through it? Gaming can be a hobby, a competition, a social space, and even a livelihood. What about when your body makes it hard to keep going? Unfortunately, when you run a search like that, all you get are articles warning that gamers are in for arthritic futures. I don’t care about that. I have arthritis now. If…
What I think about when packing
This is a shorter article, just to jog your memory if you think you might be forgetting to pack something for your upcoming trip. It’s especially for forgetful people, like my partner, who would forget his insulin pump if it weren’t attached to him. Perhaps this is something he can reference in the future… XD I’m including questions I ask myself to make sure I’m not forgetting something important, as well as a sample packing list (just with the things important to medical conditions). This could also even be useful for shorter day trips. (The amount of times I’ve been stuck without a pain reliever when I needed it is…
Kinesiology tape for arthritis
Kinesiology tape (also kinesio tape or KT) was first was first suggested to me a few years ago by a friend who thought it might help my recalcitrant shoulder. The box of KT Tape she handed me claimed it could fix everything. Bad knee? Injured ankle? Sore shoulder? Back? Neck? Hands? Kinesiology tape can help! Of course, the asterisk warns you that only some of these uses have been found effective in studies. Which ones? Who knows. I used it on my shoulder for awhile because I was out of other options. I’d experienced physical therapy, braces, medicines, x-rays, MRIs, ultrasounds – nothing helped and doctors couldn’t tell me why.…
Standing with chronic pain
Standing has been a problem for me for a long time. It’s a lot easier now that my symptoms are under control, but it will still get to me after standing still for more than about an hour. For me, it’s a particular aching pain in my lower back that comes from keeping it in one position for too long, and it can also affect my knees and even my shoulder. This can make doing dishes, going to concerts, waiting in lines, and many other things a challenge, but there are some things that have helped me. Eliminate standing when possible Doing dishes is already a chore most people try…
Biologics: Autoinjector or syringe?
When I started Humira, my doctor automatically put it in as an autoinjector prescription. That was a mistake. The first time I did the injection, it was okay. No big deal. Sure, it hurt, and it took awhile to get myself to press the button, but I could deal with it. The second time, though, it took a little longer, and definitely felt more painful. The third time took a little longer to do, and the fourth time… Well, I couldn’t do it. Each shot was like injecting burning venom into my body. It was so painful, I just couldn’t bring myself to press the button. It led to a breakdown… or…
Air travel with Humira or Enbrel
I’ll be visiting Arizona next week during the time when I’ll need to take Humira, so, of course, one of the first things I’ll have to think about when packing is how I’m transporting it. This will be the second time I’m taking Humira or Enbrel on a plane, so it doesn’t feel like that big of a deal (no bigger than the whole TSA fiasco normally is). The first time, though, I was very confused about what I would have to do bring my Humira through the airport (or my sister her Enbrel). This post contains everything you might want to know about flying with Humira or Enbrel. To find the key…
