I realized after a few questions I received that I hadn't updated everyone on the latest with my knee, hips, etc. so for those asking, here is what we know. For those that aren't asking, feel free to stop reading here. I won't be offended!
Last week I was finally diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder, though which one still remains a mystery. My rheumatologist's best guess? Rheumatoid or psoriatic arthritis. I also have achilles tendinitis, which explains the painful situation going on in my right heel for the past 4 or 5 months.
My knee has been suffering quite badly with more cysts, so I have been put on a brief stint of medicine to kick that back into shape, and hopefully help my hip pain in the process. Over the next several months we will try a few different medicines (that will only target RA for instance) to see if my body responds. The hope is this will help us get a full, proper diagnosis. Once I have that, I intend to try any (and all!) natural solutions I can find to keep things feeling good. I have heard that these medications can be quite harsh on your body, and for someone who prefers to not take medicine in general, my hope is that I can find a natural solution that works for me! Although all of our questions haven't been answered, we have ruled out the potential of any sort of mechanical problems, and just knowing that it is an autoimmune disorder is huge progress!
In the meantime, even though my knee is still double its normal size, I've been able to do a little bit of exercise at long last! Over the long weekend, we enjoyed two days out of cross country skiing! That's right, there are skis hiding under that beautiful dry powder you see in the photo! And day two (pictured above)? Only a ten minute drive from our house! I love how easy and accessible cross country skiing can be!
I am really grateful to finally be on the track to a diagnosis with all of this. We are entering the third winter that this has been causing me grief and I am ready to find a solution so I can finally get back to living my life the way I want to - being active!
Thanks for the well wishes. Although this is not exactly a super scary diagnosis (it could be much worse!), it has been a bit of a roller coaster and the support has been very much appreciated!
Happy New Year!
