What's wrong with you then?

ichabod6

I am a total believer in self management and to my mind the most
important sm technique you can and should develop is communication,
and in particular expanding your communication skills to include being
fully able to explain and discuss whatever arthritic condition(s) blip your life.
My family, my medical team, my dentist, my optician and all my friends are fully aware rheumatoid arthritis, crohns disease, osteoarthritis, osteoporosis
and a recent stroke have and continue to feature in my life.
They all at various times discuss my various conditions and have no difficulty in responding.
You are failing them if you do not talk and continue to talk with them.
Put simply how can they know of your problems if you dont tell them?
ps. I missed my pharmacist and my cyber friends on this website from the
above list of communicants.

stickywicket

For once I disagree with ichabod.

Everyone who deals with me medically has the full list and I'm perfectly willing to answer anyone's questions about my RA or other stuff but only to the level at which they want to know. Most people aren't that interested and I much prefer discussing cricket or single malts anyway

ichabod6

Bloomin eck, sw! Art tha disagreein wi me?
I think you may have misfielded the full intent of my
post, but nae bother.
T' cricket starts toneet an I'll be washing it down wi a
glass or two of Jamesons (current best beloved supping
beverage) and, who knows ? if thileets are worth watching
I'll be seein agin tomorrow and I'll washing them down with a
pint or two of Wainwrights.
Please note the first two words are written to comply with
current posting regulations, but are not what I would usually
say. Can you guess what?

Boomer13

I used to see the benefits in discussing my illness with close friends, but not too much and only if they were interested. However, I have noticed a curious effect. They ask, listen, appear interested then suggest an outing that is completely inappropriate.

I have one friend in particular who stays at the house a couple of times a year who is especially keen to learn. We discuss, then there is a complete non-understanding when I don't participate in various things. It's most confusing. I've come to dread visits from this person, and steer away from any discussion with anyone now regarding my condition.

What's the point? I think most people feign interest, and believe that to some degree, one should be able to mentally overcome their disabilities with fierce determination. The more determination I have, the worse I get. I opt for self-preservation.

dreamdaisy

I am of the opinion that you can explain things until you are blue in the face but until the person listening experiences something similar themselves they will not grasp the limitations this disease can place upon us. Mr DD demonstrated this earlier this year. He had his emergency op, decided to go back to work after only two weeks of convalescence (despite my reasoning that it was too early) and struggled to regain his health for considerably longer than he needed. A couple of months later he admitted that he should have listened to me when I advised a whole month off to recuperate. Twerp. The healthy take their health for granted, and so they should. Mind you, if one more person says to me 'I don't do ill . . . . . . . ' I will happily afford them the opportunity to try it for size. DD