For the longest time, I used to think my persistent back pain was just from poor posture or stress. But when the fatigue, sleep problems, and that deep aching pain refused to go away—even on good days—I knew it wasn’t just in my head. That’s when fibromyalgia entered the picture. If you’re dealing with something…
Managing more than one autoimmune disease—especially when one of them is rheumatoid arthritis (RA)—can feel overwhelming. Autoimmune diseases happen when your immune system mistakenly attacks your own body. When you have RA and other autoimmune conditions at the same time, it can affect many parts of your body and make daily life more challenging. But…
Does RA affect memory? That’s a question I hear more often than you’d think. As a Rheumatology nurse practitioner, I’ve had patients look at me with a mix of frustration and fear when they say, “I feel like I’m forgetting everything lately… is it the RA?” It’s not just aches and swollen joints anymore—we’re talking…
When people hear “rheumatoid arthritis,” they often picture joint pain, swelling, and maybe some stiffness in the mornings. But let me tell you, after years of working closely with patients as a Rheumatology nurse practitioner, I’ve seen firsthand that the hidden symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis are where things get tricky. These symptoms can fly under…
If you’ve ever felt like your body was fighting you from the inside out, you’re not alone. I’ve seen it time and again in my years as a Rheumatology nurse practitioner — patients coming in, exhausted, achy, and unsure of why they feel like they’re running on empty. One of the most common culprits? Rheumatoid…
If you’ve ever asked yourself, can asthma cause fatigue after talking, you’re not alone. I’ve had countless patients look at me after a short conversation and say, “I don’t know why, but I feel completely drained just from talking.” As a pulmonary nurse practitioner, I’ve seen firsthand how asthma doesn’t just affect the lungs—it impacts…
If you’ve ever left work more tired than when you arrived, you’re not alone. I’ve spent years working in a Gastroenterology clinic, and let me tell you—so many of our patients walked in thinking they were just “tired all the time,” only to find out there was a sneaky culprit behind it: GERD. Yep, can…
If you’ve ever had a few nights of bad sleep and noticed your blood pressure reading creeping up during a routine checkup, you’re not imagining things. Can lack of sleep cause hypertension? Absolutely—and it’s something I see all the time in my internal medicine practice. I’ve worked with countless patients who were doing “all the…
As a Rheumatology Nurse Practitioner with years of hands-on experience, I’ve had the privilege of working with countless patients who struggle with the complexities of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). One of the most common questions I get from my patients, especially those dealing with the more debilitating symptoms, is: “Can rheumatoid arthritis cause chronic fatigue syndrome…