I was excited when CreakyJoints asked me to write about my relationship with my dog. I thought it would be easy to reflect on our life together, but it wasn’t. My dog and I have a complicated relationship that was harder to explain than I expected Not only is she my constant companion and fur baby, Georgia is also a fellow spoonie.
Here is our story:
I’ve been living with multiple chronic illnesses for over 20 years. My journey into the world of chronic illness life started with Grave’s disease and DSAP (a skin disease) then moved into more painful illnesses of Fibromyalgia and Polyarticular Spondlyoarthropathy. Through the years I’ve had some relief from various medications, but overall, my pain has been my constant companion since my early 30’s. I loved animals and always had dogs as a child, but I hesitated to get one as an adult because of my pain and physical limitations. Dogs need to be exercised, bathed, and groomed and honestly, I have a hard enough time doing that stuff for myself. Instead I had two cats and I adored them, but in the back of my mind, I have always been a dog person. So I decided to do some research. I spent almost a year researching dozens of breeds to find the best fit for me. I finally decided on a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel because that type of dog seemed to fit my lifestyle and my ability level. I noted there were hereditary illnesses with the breed, but having 8 dogs prior and watching my mom manage their illnesses, I figured that I could handle whatever was ahead. I even took out pet insurance to err on the side of caution. I thought I did everything right…
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Reblogged this on As my Joints Turn and commented:
I’m proud to be a part of RA Blog Week 2017. I’m just returning from three days in Washington DC where I visited members of Congress and Senate to discuss the needs of patients living with Rheumatic diseases. Needless to say, I’m 100% exhausted today. Today’s prompt relates to partners.
Partners – Where would we be without our partners? They are often not just partners but caregivers. Tell your partners story. And if you do not have a partner what will your ideal partner be like, or do you even want one?
I currently don’t have a partner, but I wrote this love letter to my dog Georgia a few years ago. It was originally found on Creaky Joints. I’m being somewhat lazy because I had to get cortisone injections in both of my elbows and am switching biologic drugs (for the 7th time). Because of this, I’m going to reblog a story about my Georgia Grace. At this point, she is my partner in crime, my BFF, and my best friend. We share the chronic illness journey and although I hate that we both are on this journey, I’m so grateful to have her in my life.
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