Joint Journey — Jemma Newman

It’s the beginning of summer here in Australia, and I’m sitting peacefully at my dining table, basking in the blissful stillness of my normally noisy living room. Through the open doors, I can hear the heady drone of cicadas…

The busy Christmas season can be overwhelming, even when you don’t have a chronic disease like ankylosing spondylitis (AS). Because both my husband and I have AS, sometimes we find it hard to enjoy socializing as we…

This morning I planned to go for a long walk beside the beach here in Perth, Australia. It’s a beautiful piece of coastline, with turquoise waters splashing crisply against the white sands. You can walk for hours along a…

After many months on the hospital waiting list, I was looking forward to my first rheumatologist appointment. I had high hopes that I’d be prescribed medication that could help with my horrible nighttime pain from ankylosing spondylitis (AS).

“Ooh, my back hurts!” my 3-year-old son groaned, clutching it dramatically as he crouched on the carpet amid a pile of Duplo blocks and miniature cars. He glanced at me cheekily from under his long eyelashes, checking to see…

“What’s one of the best things I can do to help?” I asked my husband, Dave, who has ankylosing spondylitis (AS). We were sitting together outside, relaxing after the whirlwind evening routine of getting our kids into bed.

Don’t stand too close, because I’m a sniffling, coughing, bathrobe-wrapped lump of a human this week. It’s nothing too serious, just a run-of-the-mill sore throat and cold that’s making me speak like I have a clothes peg…

The sea breeze wafted in my open car window as I drove happily along a seaside highway, tapping my fingers in time to the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Suddenly a large truck came roaring up from behind,…

Life’s good at throwing curveballs, and we never saw this one coming. It was a pretty big shock when my husband, Dave, and I were both diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) within the space of two years. At…

Hands up if you’re desperate for a good night’s sleep. Yes, I see all you ankylosing spondylitis (AS) folk out there, waving your hands around madly. I see you! If you suffer from this autoimmune disease, and especially…

Daily conversation topics are a bit different at our house. Instead of discussing the news or an upcoming holiday, we’re often chatting about stiffening joints, eye problems from iritis, or the best way to deal with a painful…