I can't remember how old I was when I was diagnosed with RA.  I'm 55 going on 56 now.  I have to do the relative thing.  Let's see, I had my hysterectomy in February of 2000.  I married my current husband in June of 2000, and also went from being a general aircraft electrical worker to a general aircraft mechanic.  Let's see....I had an attack of status asthmaticus somewhere after that---like spring of 2002?  Enter Advair and no longer having to suck on Albuterol all day.

Seems like somewhere along 2004, late in the year, I noticed my knees being a little achey.  Early 2005 I gave up parking as far from the front gate as I could to parking as close as I could, because I now had to lurch into work instead of walking.  My knees did not want to work at all, the the fingers of my left hand were a major problem--if I woke up with them curled, it took 3 hours to get them straight.  If I held any tool in my left hand for more than two minutes, I had to pry it out and go back to rubbing my fingers to get them straight again.  It became almost impossible for me to use a torque gun, even the 25 inch pound ones.  The sudden stop of the clutch would jerk my hand, causing excruciating pain in my wrist.

I finally got a diagnosis of "possible rhuematoid arthritis" (my rheumatoid factor was elevated) and got to see a rheumatologist.  He did more tests, x-rays, and lots of blood work.  Then he started me on Plaquenil.  Wow!  I could walk again!  I could swing the 60-pound balance bay panels into the horizontals again!  (Those are parts on the tail assembly of an airplane.)

Did it bother me to be diagnosed with RA?  No, I was glad to know my problem had a name.  It was just something to add to asthma as a chronic illness.