Karen & Arthritis » love.

Hope is Incurable – Arthritis Support Group

Karen — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 23:33:15 +0000

Hi Everyone,
I look forward to sharing an evening with you at Cibo restaurant.

Where? 767 2nd Ave between East 42nd and East 41 St in Manhattan.

When? August 24, 2011 at 6.45 p.m.

We’ll share some stories and offer support.
I hope to see you there,
Karen

NOTES TO SELF

Karen — Sat, 23 Jul 2011 19:53:35 +0000

A few nights ago I was on Lincoln Rd in South Beach FL taking in the sites and enjoying the vacation feeling. I watched a family as they walked by me. Mom was carrying an overtired babe in her arms, the other child was in the stroller and dad was hanging onto a half eaten pizza in a ‘doggy bag.’ Despite their own struggle and need to get home quickly before one the kids had a meltdown, mom noticed a homeless man as he passed them on the street. A quick converstation followed between husband and wife. A moment later, dad ran after the homeless guy to give him the pizza. It was a half a block before he caught him, as mom hung back and held the fort down. Observing this human spirit as I sat quietly alone with my dog by my side made me cry. Always have hope!

Information on RA

Karen — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 04:44:16 +0000

Dear Rick,
Hi. Thanks for contacting me. I just want to say first of all that doctors still do not know the exact cause of RA. So please do not blame yourself. I am sorry to hear about your daughter Courtney. The pain that both you and Courtney feel is immense and it’s both physical and emotional. My mom suffered just as much as me.
I would suggest you contact the arthritis office in Arizona or the national office fir advice on Doctors. I will add though that my doctor doesn’t take my health insurance either, but my medications are covered and I get blood work done elsewhere. The key is to
treat RA aggressively before joints are damaged. This can mean
biologics. I inject every two weeks. Everyone’s reaction is different
though.
I think diet does play a small part. Bread for me is not a good idea.
With your permission, I’d like to put you in touch with a man called Brian. He has a daughter with RA too. I sense that you could be a big support to each other.
I hope I’ve been able to help you. My book, Enemy Within is available in Amazon and is about my journey with RA. It is raw and honest. I do talk about natural remedies but I feel they actually made me worse not better.
Anyway I hope I’ve been of some help.
Best
Karen
Sent from my iPhone

On Mar 1, 2011, at 1:08 PM, ……. ” wrote:

Hello Karen, My name is Rick and I live in a small town in Arizona called Williams. It is located about 65 miles south of the Grand Canyon National Park. Any way I was reading your story in arthritis today magazine. I was in a clinic getting a physical. My daughter Courtney suffers with RA. I must have evidently passed this terrible disease to her at birth, in 1976. My Mother, God rest her soul battled this condition her whole life. It disfigured her tiny hands terribly. And I fear that will be the same fate for Courtney. What I am writing you about is, if you might know of some good doctors in the Phoenix, Az. area. Or how we would find one. There is a Dr. Epstein in Flagstaff, Az. but he will not accept my daughters insurance, even though her carrier would pay it. He evidently will not work with her insurance carrier, but is more than willing to see her “out of pocket” and then it’s up to Courtney to submit the paperwork and bills. This could be very expensive I fear. Unless he is willing to review her records and blood work from her previous study group she signed on with. But I doubt it because most Dr.’s probably want their own lab work. This is VERY frustrating. Courtney had been apart of a study that has been treating her the past year with shots. She was told that some would get the real thing and some would get a placebo shot. Well…….I for one do not think that even if she is getting the real thing, that this medicine is working. I have no idea what the shots contain. Is there a book on diet you could recommend, or is that necessary? Courtney tries to eat healthy, and is currently drinking “Just Tart Cherry” by “R.W. Knudson” “Organic” which very much seems to be helping with the stiffness in her knees, and other area’s of concern. Is you book about treatments or things you have tried? Does diet have a lot to do with RA? I also remember you mentioning bio-medicines you’ve had success with.Well ………….. I appreciate very much your time today, and wish you the best in life, and pray for your healing. Hopefully one day medicine will be discovered to help all the people that suffer with this terrible condition. Once again, thanks for listening to me………

Mom’s Letter to Oprah ….Every caretaker should read this

Karen — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 00:46:08 +0000

For awhile my daughter Karen and I did not know what her life’s purpose was. At 17, Karen was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. She has battled this disease for 30 years. There were times when she blamed it on me and she was angry. There were times when she made me cry. There were times when she was an invalid and couldn’t cut up her own food, bathe, or wipe herself after using the toilet. We lived through this together. Eventually, she found some medication to control her disease enough for her to become a teacher. One day, her grade two student noticed her crooked, bent fingers and her limp. He asked my daughter “why do your fingers stay bent like that?” She hid the reason. He asked again and again. Finally, Karen told her student why. His response, “now I know why you understand the kids in your class who can’t read, and the kids who can’t keep up.” From this day on Karen never complained about her excrutiatingly painful and debilitating disease. Instead, she has become the grass roots voice for millions of people around the world who have this unglamorous auto immune illness. Karen has lobbied the Australian Government for equal access for all Australians to get the medications they need, and she has written an award winning Australian memoir “Enemy Within”. Oprah, Karen’s life could have gone another way. But she found the courage to tell her story with brutal honesty so that she could stand up and make a difference. She has reached out and touched the hearts of all people who are trying to deal with their own enemy within no matter what that enemy is. For some, it maybe a battle with loneliness, for others it’s could be a loss, depression or maybe a battle with weight; no matter what the enemy is her book has helped to give hope to her readers. For this reason, my daughter is my hero and she is a hero to many. Karen’s life’s purpose is to help others to always have hope.

Enemy Within by Karen Ager earns 5 Star Reviews

Karen — Sun, 28 Nov 2010 17:13:03 +0000

“As inspirational stories go, this is up there with the best.” Martin Stevenson of the Launceston Examiner – November 13, 2010

For more 5 star reviews copy and paste

http://www.amazon.com/Enemy-Within-strength-determination-acceptance/dp/1741108500

Enemy Within – My Readers’ Fears and Hopes

Karen — Wed, 10 Nov 2010 02:11:29 +0000

I have received many emails lately from fans of my book Enemy Within. Some too personal to share, some full of fears and others full of pain.
Hope is always the last thing to go, so please hang in there.
Our disease maybe incurable, but having hope will help you navigate the lonely times and give you strength to face the future. Hope is incurable!

NPR

Karen — Thu, 20 May 2010 19:26:28 +0000

Enemy Within by Karen Ager is becoming real. I did one live radio interview today and one which was taped for NPR and is scheduled to air in AL,GA,FL in July. Gotta get this book out there because I know it will empower so many people to ‘just keep going.’!