tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1111759402299922596.post8403176490517540150..comments2024-01-09T07:18:52.962-07:00Comments on Rheumatoid is a funny word: Putting Dreams to RestKathrynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16230626480182433888noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1111759402299922596.post-65579529458807221082012-09-15T23:59:31.647-06:002012-09-15T23:59:31.647-06:00I wish I knew more of what to say. Your words hit ...I wish I knew more of what to say. Your words hit really really close to home for me. I too am in college and dealing with crippling pain every minute of every day for the last 8 years but every day I get up, throw on my dress(pants do hurt too much) and drag my ass to school. I spent 20 years regretting never finishing school so now I am. I will probably never be able to work again. I do get disability and while it's not the easiest thing to get and to accept that I need it, it cushions a little and it makes me feel like someone took me seriously for once. Keep going hon, you don't know what the next 5, 10 years will hold for us, it could be nothing, but it could be really really awesome, and it will make you glad you did. XOXOXOjmbrewerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03040435840445375153noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1111759402299922596.post-54455791053987654012012-09-12T21:58:02.985-06:002012-09-12T21:58:02.985-06:00I read this after you posted it a few hours ago an...I read this after you posted it a few hours ago and have been turning it over in my mind ever since. I don't have any answers. And I don't think I would feel any differently that you do right now. In fact, I'm confident I would exactly the same. I guess the thing that occurred to me as I re-read your post just now is that you painstakingly describe the things you do know about your condition: chronic pain, limited mobility, financial and career uncertainty.<br />But what you don't explore here are the possibilities: you don't know what RA therapies or cures may be in your future. You don't know what kind of jobs might exist for an environmental attorney with the passion and intelligence I know you will bring to bear to the profession. You don't know what your new dreams will be if these dreams are put to rest. They could be even better than these dreams - no one knows! <br />What I do know is I have encountered many people in my life who would dream to write just one sentence as beautifully, expressively and eloquently as you do. (And let’s not even consider the people who don’t realize that they can’t string together a noun and verb.) What I do know is that the world is always changing and the ways in which we work is also changing. The best thing you can do is to keep up with the changes so when you have that law degree, you will be able jump right in. And what I know above all, is that Uno would certainly not be alive right now had you not rescued him. He was part of a truck-load of newly weaned rescue foals with grim and uncertain futures. <br />I know you feel defeated right now. I know your relationship with Uno has been different than you dreamed it would be because of RA. But being different doesn't invalidate it.<br />And help is there for a reason. There are people who misuse and abuse assistance, and that has, unfortunately and wrongly, stigmatized many of the people who receive it. Make no mistake - you are not one of those people. Accepting help is not defeat; defeat is giving up. <br />The other thing I know for sure is that when you receive this help, and you get that degree, and you have a successful career, and you continue to be a valued and contributing member of the larger community, you will give back in some way to those who will then need YOUR help. The circle remains unbroken.<br />essbeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06975671840044712601noreply@blogger.com