I spent my summer watching Survivor. You know, the reality television show that shows people living in rugged, beautiful climates, taking part in challenges and voting each other off the island every few days. I was a fan when it started in 2000, but over the years, schedules and life turned my attention to other viewing pleasures.
Back then, I liked the beautiful settings and the intrigue among the cast members who were creating these intense relationships from living together in harsh circumstances and then back-stabbing those same people as part of the game. But what I really loved were the challenges. These usually took the form of giant obstacle courses, either on a sandy beach or in the ocean. Contestants swam, jumped, dug, wiggled and ran their way to winning rewards or immunity from being voted off. I liked to think about how I would do that and what skills I would bring to such fun.
Related: 10 'Hidden' Symptoms of Rheumatoid Arthritis We Don't Talk About
But this summer was different.
After years away from the show, this summer I found 34 seasons on Hulu and binged my way through season after season. I was able to do this because this summer a rheumatoid arthritis flare that included severe back pain and fatigue put me in bed with just a phone and a remote. I spent hours watching Survivor, drawn in by something internal and strong. At first, I wasnt sure what the lure was, but then it occurred to me.
I saw myself on that screen, except this time through the lens of my new reality.
When contestants would swim into the ocean, climb a ladder to retrieve a special key, then swim back, struggling to pull themselves on to a platform, I saw myself. I recognized that deep, unshakable fatigue, even though the genesis was different for them than for me.
When it rained for five days straight and their fire went out so they could only eat coconut in wet clothes, I recognized the despair on their faces from not knowing when this particular pain would end.
Related: 13 Things People Who Have to Give Themselves Shots Wish Others Understood
When a downcast contestant would dig deep and finish a challenge just when they needed the win, I found inspiration in my own battle for a win.
When their families showed up as a surprise reward, I wept from knowing how sustaining that unconditional love is and the hope it brings.
Yes, I saw myself in these Survivor contestants. No, I wasnt wearing a bathing suit on national TV or wrestling another person to try to win fishing gear, but I was in my own battle. It was a battle that included pain, despair, fatigue and hope. It was a battle that meant I had to will all my internal strength to be the victor. And as summer ended and my pain eased, I realized that I too, in my own reality, could call myself a Sole Survivor.
5 Tips for Success With Medical Cannabis
What Its Like When Doctors Blame You for Your Chronic Illness
8 Ways to Partner With Your Doctor and Take Charge of Your Healing
How I Took Walking for Granted
Read the original post:
Why I Relate to 'Survivor' as Someone With Rheumatoid Arthritis - Yahoo Lifestyle
- Pharmacist explains best diet to reduce arthritis, inflammation and joint pain - The Mirror - March 10th, 2024
- Teen Raises Funds to Fight Arthritis - Arthritis Foundation - March 10th, 2024
- Is there a higher risk of depression among specific populations of patients with rheumatoid arthritis? - News-Medical.Net - March 10th, 2024
- Here's How to Explain Your Arthritis Pain to Your Doctor So They Actually Get It - Northwest Georgia News - March 10th, 2024
- Despite Their Prevalence, Arthritis, Neck and Back Pain Receive Few Research Dollars, Analysis Finds | BIDMC of ... - Beth Israel Deaconess Medical... - March 10th, 2024
- This Is the Difference Between Rheumatoid and Psoriatic Arthritis - Prescott Daily Courier - March 10th, 2024
- The #1 Early Sign of Arthritis Most People Miss, According to a Rheumatologist - Northwest Georgia News - March 10th, 2024
- The Efficacy and Safety of Apremilast in the Management of Psoriatic Arthritis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis - Cureus - March 10th, 2024
- MU Researchers Participating in International Clinical Study Targeting Prevention of Osteoarthritis - University of Missouri School of Medicine - March 10th, 2024
- Review: Real-World Evidence Confirms Effectiveness and Safety of Adalimumab Biosimilar SB5 - The Center for Biosimilars - March 10th, 2024
- A Gender-Bias-Mitigated, Data-Driven Precision Medicine System to Assist in the Selection of Biological Treatments of ... - Cureus - March 10th, 2024
- Young arthritis cases are on the rise, new research suggests - The Examiner - March 10th, 2024
- Quiz: ACR Guideline for the Treatment of Psoriatic Arthritis - MD Magazine - February 10th, 2024
- Psoriatic arthritis: What to know about medications for children - Medical News Today - February 10th, 2024
- Ancient Egyptian woman had holes on her bones. Experts say its rare case of disease - Miami Herald - February 10th, 2024
- Arthritis and Pregnancy: Fertility, Gestation, Postpartum - Verywell Health - February 10th, 2024
- 3500-year-old burial of Nubian woman reveals 1 of world's earliest known cases of rheumatoid arthritis - Livescience.com - February 10th, 2024
- Impact of frailty severity and severe pain on cognitive function for community-dwelling older adults with arthritis: a cross ... - Nature.com - February 10th, 2024
- IHL-675A: Advancing Towards Innovative Arthritis Solutions, with Mark Bleackley, PhD - MD Magazine - February 10th, 2024
- Insomnia, Shorter Sleep Duration Linked to the Risk of Autoimmune Arthritis - MD Magazine - February 10th, 2024
- Advancements in Psoriatic Arthritis Treatment for Children: A Beacon of Hope - Medriva - February 10th, 2024
- Breakthrough Molecule RvT4 Reverses Inflammation and Clears Arterial Blockages in Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients - SciTechDaily - February 10th, 2024
- Personal Experience with Psoriatic Arthritis and Atopic Dermatitis - Medriva - February 10th, 2024
- EULAR Recommendations on Imaging in Crystal-Induced Arthropathies (CiA) - Medriva - February 10th, 2024
- The Importance of Ultrasound-Guided Synovial Biopsy in the Workup of Seronegative Inflammatory Arthritis: A Case ... - Cureus - February 10th, 2024
- Autoimmune diseases like lupus, MS, and rheumatoid arthritis strike far more women than men. Scientists now think they know why - Fortune - February 2nd, 2024
- Multiple Ulcers in the Ileum and Lymphadenopathy Following the Usage of Methotrexate in a Patient With Rheumatoid ... - Cureus - February 2nd, 2024
- These are the best arthritis creams of 2024, according to health experts - Yahoo Life - February 2nd, 2024
- Do Your Joints Ache When a Storm Is Brewing? Here's What's Really Happening - DISCOVER Magazine - February 2nd, 2024
- Olympic bronze medalist opens up about balancing arthritis with motherhood and triathlon - TRI247 - February 2nd, 2024
- Some Dinosaurs May Have Had Arthritis 90 Million Years Ago - IFLScience - February 2nd, 2024
- 3500-year-old remains of ancient Egyptian suffering from rheumatoid arthritis uncovered - Xinhua - February 2nd, 2024
- Lupus and other autoimmune diseases strike far more women than men. Now there's a clue why - The Associated Press - February 2nd, 2024
- Rheumatoid Arthritis Awareness Day on February 2: What you need to know - CNBCTV18 - February 2nd, 2024
- Rheumatoid Arthritis Awareness Day 2024: Signs, Symptoms, Diagnosis, and Prevention - News18 - February 2nd, 2024
- Improving arthritis in cold weather | Health Smart - WPMT FOX 43 - February 2nd, 2024
- Rheumatoid Arthritis Awareness Day: History, Significance And All You Need To Know - ABP Live - February 2nd, 2024
- Dietary Factors Tied to Osteoarthritis Pain | MedPage Today - Medpage Today - February 2nd, 2024
- Cold-weather coping tips for people with arthritis, osteoporosis and lung diseases - Southernminn.com - February 2nd, 2024
- How to manage arthritis and joint pain: Effective tips for knee pain relief - Health shots - February 2nd, 2024
- New study illuminates the genetics of thumb arthritis treatment - News-Medical.Net - January 25th, 2024
- Rheumatoid arthritis: 30 minutes of walking may lower blood pressure - Medical News Today - January 25th, 2024
- RA Disease Activity Assessed Too Little After Starting TNFi - Medscape - January 25th, 2024
- Lifestyle tips for youth's bone health: Avoid these habits to prevent arthritis - Hindustan Times - January 25th, 2024
- Best arthritis pain relief cream of 2024, according to experts - AOL - January 25th, 2024
- Vasculitis, an Early Unusual Presentation of Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Case Report - Cureus - January 25th, 2024
- Patients with later menarche, earlier menopause have higher risk for rheumatoid arthritis - Healio - January 25th, 2024
- Investigating Maternal Inflammatory Arthritis and Pregnancy Outcomes < Yale School of Medicine - Yale School of Medicine - January 25th, 2024
- Rheumatoid Arthritis and Diabetes: What's the Connection? - Health Central - January 25th, 2024
- Oxidative DNA Damage and Zinc Status in Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis in Duhok, Iraq - Cureus - January 25th, 2024
- Changes Afoot for the Treatment of Psoriatic Arthritis with Marked Gains in Preference and Utilization of IL-17 Inhibitors - Yahoo Finance - January 25th, 2024
- The Connection Between Potassium and Rheumatoid Arthritis - Health Central - January 25th, 2024
- What Is the ACR20 (American College of Rheumatology) Criteria? - Health Central - January 25th, 2024
- RA Treatment Advances and Where They Are Headed - Health Central - January 25th, 2024
- TMC Medical Minutes- Arthritis & Cold Weather - KXII - January 25th, 2024
- How to deal with joint and arthritis pain in the cold weather - Crossroads Today - January 25th, 2024
- Arthritis: Regular exercises, calcium-rich diet and other habits to keep your bones strong and healthy - Moneycontrol - January 25th, 2024
- Men With Arthritis Have Higher Fertility Rates, Study Finds - Zenger.News - January 25th, 2024
- Pain on Top of Foot: 5 Causes, Swelling, Treatment - Verywell Health - January 25th, 2024
- Understanding Rheumatoid Arthritis in Women: Genetics, Hormones, and Impact - Medriva - January 25th, 2024
- Arthritis | Johns Hopkins Medicine - January 9th, 2024
- Ideal cardiovascular health metrics have better identification of arthritis - BMC Public Health - BMC Public Health - January 9th, 2024
- Acupuncture for Arthritis: Benefits and Risks - Verywell Health - January 9th, 2024
- Why do arthritic horses have more trouble during the winter? - EQUUS Magazine - January 9th, 2024
- Rather than roll over and die, I'm like, 'No, I still want to play': Steve Morse says arthritis diagnosis forced him to ... - Guitar.com - January 9th, 2024
- Top Signs that Your RA Treatment May No Longer Be Working - Health Central - January 9th, 2024
- What Is The Life Expectancy Of Rheumatoid Arthritis? A Review By Doctors - MSN - January 9th, 2024
- Nature Coast Orthopaedics | arthritis care | medicare and most insurance accepted | Beverly Hills, FL | chronicleonline ... - Citrus County Chronicle - January 9th, 2024
- Millions of arthritis patients could struggle to get blockbuster drug, as CVS pulls it from pharmacies - Daily Mail - January 9th, 2024
- What Is Arthritis? | Arthritis Foundation - May 17th, 2023
- Procedure to Surgery for Arthritis Is Recommended After First Failed Non-Operative Therapy - DocWire News - March 29th, 2023
- Higher Prevalence of Sarcopenia Reported in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis - Rheumatology Network - October 7th, 2022
- Exploring the Relationship Between Psoriatic Arthritis and Psoriasis - Dermatology Times - October 7th, 2022
- Are Tomatoes Bad For Arthritis? Here's What An MD Has To Say - Women's Health - October 7th, 2022
- Tocilizumab for Treating ICI-Induced Arthritis and Colitis - DocWire News - October 7th, 2022
- Why Arthritis Is A Clear And Present Danger, And How We Can Fight It - CNBCTV18 - October 7th, 2022
- Arthritis: Five cruciferous veg 'block inflammatory process' - backed by 10-year study - Express - October 7th, 2022
- 5 Exercise Habits for Arthritis in Your 50s - Eat This, Not That - October 7th, 2022
- Arthritis: 8 types of fish can cause acid crystals to build up in joints - 'very painful' - Express - October 7th, 2022
- EMA Issues Positive Opinion on the Safety of Filgotinib - Medscape - October 7th, 2022