Being Open to Alternative Therapies
“Well, have you tried…?”
“I had this friend of a friend one time who…”
“My aunt’s cousin’s sister used to have it, she ate only celery, and now she is cured!”
When it comes to “helpful” advice, we’ve heard it all. If you have even one person in your life who cares about the fact that you live with psoriatic arthritis then chances are, any one of these suggestions have been made to you. Change what you eat. Try yoga. Take this supplement. The list goes on and on and chances are, you probably just shrug your aching shoulders at their well-meaning suggestions. But should we be so quick to dismiss their advice?
Accepting advice, knowing there is no cure for psoriatic arthritis
Sure, we know that our psoriatic arthritis is a chronic disease. There is no cure, game over. Do not pass Go, do not collect $200. Yes, sometimes I do feel that people in my life forget about that. Maybe I get lucky and have a round of good days or do a particularly good job at powering thru the bad ones. Yes, it is easy to look at me and assume that my hands aren’t throbbing or my feet aren’t swollen. They don’t see all of the “behind-the-scenes” work it takes to hold it all together.
Understanding what those alternative treatments really mean
Should we immediately dismiss their ideas because they are lucky enough to be healthy and don’t “understand” what we go through? Isn’t it worth it to at least try on the off chance that it might even be marginally better?
I don’t think (at least I hope that) they are suggesting that their herbs, exercises, or remedies will “cure” us. Rather, I like to think that their suggestions might just make getting through each day a little easier. They know that there is no cure. They just want to see us more. They want to help in the only way they know-how. Sure, we might be disappointed that certain remedies don’t work as well as we had hoped. But perhaps if we combine things, that they might have a positive cumulative effect.
Accepting advice with a smile on our face
Who decided that we had to choose between traditional (pharmaceutical) remedies and alternative therapies? Where is that written? Why can’t we do both? Why can’t both exist within the same world? It is all about managing expectations.
We can be open to alternative therapies (and even traditional ones for that matter) as long as we can adequately manage our expectations.
It can't hurt to either accept or politely decline their advice
Yoga, the autoimmune diet, or even the latest biologic are not going to cure us. But if we get lucky, they might help us feel marginally better. And I’m at a point in my PsA journey where I can’t quibble over marginally better. At this point, I’ll take anything. Because marginally better translates to marginally more time with my kids. Or marginally more time to do my hobbies or marginally more time to work.
It’s these little things, following an effective sleep routine, getting restorative exercise, and yes, even diet and dietary supplements that each, little by little, can add up to making a real difference in the day to day running of my life. It can’t hurt to give it a try.
Community Poll
When it comes to living with multiple health conditions, I've found my:
Join the conversation