Guest guest Posted January 29, 2008 Report Share Posted January 29, 2008 Sorry, but that old JD training just won't let go of it....devil's advocate and all that... I am not saying: " Oh, boo boo, *stress* made me get RA... " My point is: It is now becoming apparent that RA runs in our family, coming down through one specific branch of the family tree. But, in each and every case, the disease began presenting symptoms and finally its ugly self after a prolonged series of extraordinariy stressful events in each of those family members' lives. One has to wonder why some of us seem to lead happy, *normal* lives then we begin to experience the symptoms of then finally present with full blown RA after living through extraordinarily stressful events. My point is: I believe (my own personal theory here, not my doctors', but mine) that for some of us, the gene for the disease lies somewhere within our DNA making us predisposed to develope the disease, or not, at some point in our lives. And that for some of us, stress may be the " trigger " that sets off that gene that is responsible for the disease. Furthermore, as long as one is taking their meds, following a healthy lifestyle, eating well, getting enough rest....in other words doing all that is physically possible and available to them to maintain a happy and productive lifestyle while living with RA, why is it anyone else's place to throw a load of crap on that person's (not the doctors' theory -- I AM CLARIFYING HERE) that person's own personal theory as to " why me " if it eases what ever psychological discomfort they are grappling with, due to the RA. Correct me if I'm wrong (yes, yes it does happen...*wink*) but I'm pretty sure that when folks who participate in clinical trials testing new meds and the folks who are given the placebo actually *get better* on the placebo, I'm pretty sure, the scientists don't tell them.... " On that's a load of crap, we gave you a placebo... " Where is the proven science in the placebo effect? It's called mind over matter and science cannot prove nor disprove it, because it is an individual, personal phenomenon. Works for some, not for others. My point was: If one needs to find an answer for " why me " and it doesn't exactly fit into others' *proven science* I would be loathe to throw a load of excrement upon it. I would respect that person's personal theory and, then begin exploring the physical and psychological aspects of that theory from there. I now cede the soapbox.... Good Luck, Shauna Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 29, 2008 Report Share Posted January 29, 2008 Sure Shauna, my guess is we probably agree more than we disagree. I'm all for examining how stress might exacerbate flares and I could see that for some people high levels of stress may have interacted with genetic susceptibility to trigger the first RA flare. Although I would actually put *way* more money on other triggers such as the ones I outlined earlier (vaccines, viruses, environmental exposures ((remember those papers on people in high risk occupations with exposures to industrial chemicals being more likely to get RA))). What I strongly, strongly, super-duperly take exception to are the following: Doctors emphasizing the role of trauma/stress in developing RA to the exclusion of other, more likely factors and patients embracing their own stories of trauma to develop a victim stance that isn't helpful to their own management nor to us as a community of RA patients who are advocating for effective drugs, great doctors and federal research dollars. As you are a JD, I step into your realm to bring up the issue of the slippery slope. If we go into the trauma=autoimmune illness mess, it's a short hop to someone/you/life caused your RA and the idea that it's not an organic disease like MS as much as a condition that can be explained by emotional factors. It's the '60's and 70's all over again, as I outlined earlier. As a PhD I talk about stress and coping *all day long* with patients. I'm all about helping people cope with what might be beyond their control. However much of life is about learning what is in and what is out of our control. When it comes to chronic disease, I want patients to let go of the idea that they could have controlled getting their disease and instead embrace what they can actively do to cope. Clarifying what is ours and what is external is the key to mental health in many cases. I do continue to heap poo on ideas that I think are poo-ish! I'm a social scientist and it's part of my job. I appreciate this debate, it's been invigorating and thought provoking, cheers and best wishes, Kate F [ ] Let me clarify... Sorry, but that old JD training just won't let go of it....devil' s advocate and all that... I am not saying: " Oh, boo boo, *stress* made me get RA... " My point is: It is now becoming apparent that RA runs in our family, coming down through one specific branch of the family tree. But, in each and every case, the disease began presenting symptoms and finally its ugly self after a prolonged series of extraordinariy stressful events in each of those family members' lives. One has to wonder why some of us seem to lead happy, *normal* lives then we begin to experience the symptoms of then finally present with full blown RA after living through extraordinarily stressful events. My point is: I believe (my own personal theory here, not my doctors', but mine) that for some of us, the gene for the disease lies somewhere within our DNA making us predisposed to develope the disease, or not, at some point in our lives. And that for some of us, stress may be the " trigger " that sets off that gene that is responsible for the disease. Furthermore, as long as one is taking their meds, following a healthy lifestyle, eating well, getting enough rest....in other words doing all that is physically possible and available to them to maintain a happy and productive lifestyle while living with RA, why is it anyone else's place to throw a load of crap on that person's (not the doctors' theory -- I AM CLARIFYING HERE) that person's own personal theory as to " why me " if it eases what ever psychological discomfort they are grappling with, due to the RA. Correct me if I'm wrong (yes, yes it does happen...*wink* ) but I'm pretty sure that when folks who participate in clinical trials testing new meds and the folks who are given the placebo actually *get better* on the placebo, I'm pretty sure, the scientists don't tell them.... " On that's a load of crap, we gave you a placebo... " Where is the proven science in the placebo effect? It's called mind over matter and science cannot prove nor disprove it, because it is an individual, personal phenomenon. Works for some, not for others. My point was: If one needs to find an answer for " why me " and it doesn't exactly fit into others' *proven science* I would be loathe to throw a load of excrement upon it. I would respect that person's personal theory and, then begin exploring the physical and psychological aspects of that theory from there. I now cede the soapbox.... Good Luck, Shauna ________________________________________________________________________________\ ____ Never miss a thing. Make your home page. http://www./r/hs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 29, 2008 Report Share Posted January 29, 2008 > >> I appreciate this debate, it's been invigorating and thought provoking, > cheers and best wishes, > Kate F Oh, me too! The thing I miss most about my daughter living at home is the worthy opponent she is at Devil's Advocate... Shauna Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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