Rheumatoid Arthritis College Essay

During my junior year of high school, I had the opportunity to volunteer at the Arthritis walk in Philadelphia. Volunteering at the event allowed me to gain deeper intellectual engagement and also influenced my future career. At the event, I had the opportunity to meet several people who suffered with Arthritis. When observing the many effects that Arthritis had on people it widened my eyes to the lack of healthcare in society. By the end of the day a lightbulb went off in my head and I knew for sure that I wanted a career in medicine. I was certain that a career in health services was for me because each person with arthritis warmed my heart and my mind began wondering about endless ways to better their situation. Since I was a young girl I was sensitive, caring, and always trying to find a way to help someone out of a bad situation. There are

"Rheumatoid joint inflammation is an interminable infection set apart by irritation of the joints, frequently influencing the hand joints and both sides of the body in the meantime" (Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, 2009).

This affected me in many ways, one way was that I couldn't play any of the summer sports I paid for and loved to play. Another way this challenge affected me was that I had to take all of my regents for my junior year on medication then after they wore off during the test it was hard for me too focus. Which is why my ACT score is so low because I took the ACT three days after my surgery and was in to much pain to focus, but by the time I retake the test some of the college essays are due. This event helped me learn that even though you feel fine that are always things that can happen to change that about you or somebody else. Before this event happened to me, I had already wanted to become a Physical Therapist, but this event made me want to become the Physical Therapists even more because now I know the pain and feelings of losing the things you love to do. After going to therapy I saw many people come in and out of the building with smiles on their faces knowing they will soon be back to the way they were. Seeing this made me also happy knowing that one day in the future, I would be putting smiles on peoples faces. This challenge helped me in many ways, but also challenged

I all started in fifth grade when I was hospitalized on to find out I have Sickle Cell Anemia. The worst part of it all was then the doctors prevented me from doing what I loved to do most, playing basketball. Being told that I wouldn’t be able to enjoy my favorite past time was like telling a fish not to swim. The season had just started but luckily for me my doctor decided to let me finish.

I have faced many different challenges in my life. The most significant and most difficult challenge is living with attention deficit disorder. I was diagnosed with ADD around the time I entered the fourth grade. I always knew I had the potential to do well like all the other kids, but for some reason I just couldn’t. After years of constantly getting distracted at every little thing, getting yelled at for being a distraction to the other children, and struggling to get through class everyday, I was given a little blue pill called Adderall to help me. It was like a light came on in my head. I still got distracted and lost all my energy sometimes, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as before. Being medicated helped me feel normal, but at the same time made me feel like I was different. As a kid I figured none of the other students had to take a pill to fix their brain like I did. I constantly put myself down

Rheumatoid arthritis generally occurs in a symmetrical pattern, meaning that if it occurs in one hand or knee it will also happen on the other one. The disability that comes with the crippling aspect of Rheumatoid arthritis is preventable by exercise programs, and aspirin or other drugs. A joint may be repaired or replaced, and in extreme cases a gold compound injection can be used.

From ages 6 to 12, I suffered from epilepsy, contributing to my phobia of public places and anxiety. At 14, I was diagnosed with severe scoliosis and needed corrective surgery, which still affects my back to this day. From age 13 to now, I have experienced (in order) gastritis, gallstones, pancreatitis, gallbladder removal and have been diagnosed with a genetic mutation in my liver that causes stones to form. Needless to say, this has affected my diet and requires me to take medication. I have been hospitalized many times for treatment of my illnesses, the longest and most excruciating being three weeks for pancreatitis. Everyday, I wonder what it would’ve been like to have grown up healthy and lived without the constant stresses my conditions put on my body, my mind, and my family. As I got older, I only developed more problems as my personal life took a bad turn. The transition from one school to another in the eighth grade was incredibly difficult and my memories of the isolation and pain I felt are still deeply upsetting. It took me years to get accustomed to my new school and finally find myself in a place where I have made many good friends and feel comfortable with who and where I

There are different types of arthritis such as gouty arthritis which causes a swelling usually in the big toe, psoriatic arthritis that often occurs along with psoriasis and reactive arthritis which usually involves the eyes, urethra and joints. Juvenile arthritis is an umbrella term used to describe any form of childhood arthritis or arthritis-related conditions which affects people under 16 years old. The most common form of childhood arthritis is juvenile chronic arthritis (JCA) which is also referred to as juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA). Individuals who suffer from JRA experience stiffness and joint inflammation that result into swelling, warmth, soreness and redness of the joints. JRA, also

One situation in which I overcame adversity is making b-team basketball for White Knoll High School. Basketball has always been a love of mine. I first fell in love with basketball when I went to an Atlanta Hawks game with my dad when I was 5. Afterwards, my dad purchased a basketball goal to go over the garage and we spent most our weekends playing in the driveway. The next year my dad signed me up for a recreational league in the area, and I played in the same league for 5 years. My dad was my very first coach. The pride he'd have on the sidelines when I made shots or played good defense forever cemented my love for the game of basketball.

Rheumatoid arthritis is one of the incurable diseases and turns chronic with progressive inflammatory of the synovial lining of peripheral joins. It is characterized by symmetric, chronic, and deforming polyatrhitis that causes long term joint disability when not controlled early. Considering there is no cure for this disease, management focuses on pain and inflammation reduction in order to prevent destruction of joints while at the same time preserving and improving on the functionality of the patient (Varatharajan et al, 2009).

Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic syndrome that is characterized by inflammation of the peripheral joints, but it may also involve the lungs, heart, blood vessels, and eyes. The prevalence of this autoimmune disease is between 0.3% to 1.5% of the population in the United States (Feinberg, pp 815). It affects women two to three times more often than men, and the onset of RA is usually between 25 and 50 years of age, but it can occur at any age (Reed, pp 584). RA can be diagnosed by establishing the presence of persistent joint pain, swelling in a symmetric distribution, and prolonged morning stiffness. RA usually affects multiple joints, such as the hands, wrists, knees, elbows, feet, shoulders, hips, and small

The doctors couldn't figure out what was wrong with me and soon after that my brother passed away, so; I developed really bad anxiety. I had to continue the rest of my highschool career on independent studies because of the amounts of school I missed. A year after I graduated the doctors found out I had giardia and that I was having muscle spasms from the amount of stress I was going throught. I had to take a series of antibiotics for 2 months and I become a lot better. I had to learn to control my stress so that I no longer had stomach spasms and I had to learn how to manage my anxiety (which I thought i could never overcome). This experience impacted me more than anything else in my life. I learned how strong that I am and that if I could get through that, I can get through

Having so many medical issues can make life harder than usual. These things among many other experiences in my life, have been difficult to overcome. Inevitably, you have to find a way to claim what you have and the way you were born to be able to push through it. Your struggles in life should never be treated like limits but much rather seen as goals and

Rheumatoid Arthritis or (RA) is an autoimmune disease that attacks the joints and connective tissue. The result is inflammation that produces permanent damage in the joints. Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic syndrome that tends to be progressive and destructive as compared to Osteoarthritis or (OA), which is more of an age related disease caused by “wear and tear” of the joints. In contrast to (OA), rheumatoid arthritis is characterized by inflammation mostly of the joints, but is a general body disease.

A few days after being diagnosed with T1D I had received the news that my grandpa had passed away. This was really hard for me to deal with and to understand why it happened so soon. My sophomore year of high school was really difficult for me. I had lost both of my grandmas that year. I tried my best to cope with the fact that I would not get to see them at holidays anymore, that they would never see me graduate high school, or that I would not be able to hear their wonderful and happy voices anymore. It reached the point that I had mostly given up on God. I was not ready to say goodbye to some of the people that