Week Ending 11th September

Brynmor

I made a shopping list.

Not a major achievement, but I did do it using my mobile phone using a simple note-taking app that comes installed by default. What was also different was that I could speak to it: say the word "milk" and there it would appear on the list.

The big bonus was that having saved the list, I could share it with my partner and we could both change and update it live. The last bit to master is to have the phone on and be able to read the thing whilst going round the shops...

Judging by looking around, most people seem to have no trouble reading their phone and shopping at the same time 😶

As a diversion to struggling, here's an piece on how to write longer articles just by talking to a computer from someone who has arthritis. Written in 2017, I bet I could do a lot of this now using a mobile phone.

1. Instagram Live

Versus Arthritis had their first interactive live interview using Instagram with Max Poplawski.

Max joined us to answer questions about life with ankylosing spondylitis. He opened up about how he copes with his condition, his passion for sport and offered tips for other young people who may be newly diagnosed.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CE9vtl0pSX0/

Its well worth a watch: skip to 7:00 minutes into the video as there are a couple of technical issues (as usual with a first go at something technical). You can watch/listen back to the recording. If you have Instagram, you can also log in to read/comment via the link.

2. Everyday tips for living with arthritis

Everyone’s arthritis is different, and symptoms can vary from day to day. There are many ways to maintain a good quality of life when living with arthritis. Here’s our top tips and hacks to help make daily tasks a little easier, from an article published a couple of weeks ago:

https://www.versusarthritis.org/news/2020/august/everyday-tips-for-living-with-arthritis/

We also have our own Community list of Ideas to make life easier, held in archive and something that we hope to turn into a useful resource for our members.

3. The Flip Side

Being a partner of someone living with arthritis is not a subject that often comes up frequently with the Online Community. @deoknight has helped out by starting a conversation by relating his story and to "reach out to you all as a form of catharsis but also to say to other spouses of sufferers you are not alone."

Do join in the discussion and encourage your partner to add their comments - it's an important subject.

Readers may also like to visit a previous article on the web site : How can I support my partner with their arthritis?

4. Featured Story: Going Back to University

"My first year at university felt like the worst time to be living with arthritis"

Kalifa was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis at 17. Now 20, she is a graduate and advocate for equality, diversity and inclusion. She shares her experiences of living with arthritis as a young person.

https://www.versusarthritis.org/news/2020/august/my-first-year-at-university-felt-like-the-worst-time-to-be-living-with-arthritis/

5. Where to even begin

I really love the support, empathy and help we can all give each other in the Online Community. When you get off the phone from a consultation and get that feeling of disbelief... "I hung up and wondered what the hell just happened" is all too frequent and a nasty surprise for a new diagnosis. Indeed, Where to even begin.

Every new person who is helped by the support and empathy of your replies is another person with arthritis who is no longer alone. Thanks to all of you.

New updates on advice and support on the Coronavirus pages. As well as keeping up with the latest information, do check out our dedicated resources for England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

Stay safe, stay well.

Brynmor

frogmorton

Brynmor

Thank you so much for this week's update it was very very good - Max was great confidant and so articulate what a help that will be to young people.

This Community is wonderful for supporting each other we are so lucky to have the forum. It helped me so much at the beginning of my Arthritis 'journey' and know it is still doing the same for new people now 🙂

Thanks again

Toni xx

Shaphron

Next step on the shopping list is to get a voice assistant - like Alexa - and have it link to an app on your phone. I make my shopping list by telling Alexa to add something whenever I think of it in the house, and then can check the app on my phone at the shops. My partner can do the same, and it updates live, so if I think of something and add it to the list while he's shopping it's there on his phone immediately. We forget a lot less now we can add something to the shopping list whenever we think of it.

frogmorton

I have Alexa, but never tried this.....is it difficult to set up @Shaphron ?

Mike1

I keep a shopping list, written in pencil on paper, on the fridge and then when I go on-line to put my order in I have it sitting beside my laptop! I wouldn't trust the cat if I had an Alexa 😁

Shaphron

Hi @frogmorton, no, it's not. Alexa comes with a shopping list built in, just tell her to add something to shopping list. If you have the Alexa app on your phone you can see it there by tapping on "More" then "Lists and Notes". You can make more lists than the two it comes with as standard (Shopping list and To-Do).

I've actually synced this up with Any List, another app on my phone, because I prefer how the list looks on the phone. It's free, and really easy to sync with Alexa. In the Any List app just go to "Settings" then "Amazon Alexa" and you can sync the lists there. But this step is unnecessary, I 've just done it because I prefer how the lists look.

Both work brilliantly if you have a partner, because the appearance of new items on the list is immediate. So if a partner is out shopping you can still add something to the list and it will appear for them straight away. But I love being able to add something to the list as soon as I think of it, rather than trying to remember I need to add loo roll to the list (for instance).

Mike1

Just put my home delivery order in to Asda and my paper list worked perfectly! 😁

frogmorton

Interesting....mostly I shop online now I feel safer, but i do send my husband out for those bits which I either forgot or run out of unexpectedly!

Mike I don't even do a paper list hence the running out of stuff🙄