Living with Scleroderma

Reflections on the Messy Complexity of Chronicity

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Women’s Imaging

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Monday morning. I am at one of my least favorite medical appointments: my annual mammogram. I am relieved to get through the test in a matter of minutes (even as it feels much longer when clamped in that sadistic machine). What strikes me most about this year’s visit is the new surroundings for the clinic, which has been relocated into a large medical complex. It’s the signage that gets me—a separate section within Radiology dubbed “Women’s Imaging.”

Why do they have to use a euphemism for Mammography? Is someone afraid that women are too embarrassed to go to a waiting area clearly marked for what we all know is screening for breast cancer? Do they think our sensibilities are too delicate to deal with acknowledging one of the major risks to women’s health?

I find it ridiculous. And demeaning. Being an intelligent health care consumer means being aware and informed about the realities of your medical conditions, treatment options and risks. It does not mean pretending or denying or ignoring that women have some specific health risks that merit our proactive attention.

I have made a conscious choice to follow my doctor’s recommendation for an annual mammogram. My mother had a benign cyst removed from her breast when I was in grade school. I suffer the discomfort because I want to know the results, even as the value of mammograms has come into question in recent studies. In particular, there are serious questions about whether women are being over-treated for small tumors in breast ducts that show up on the scans, but that would not actually threaten health if left untreated. (You can read more about that here.)

Fortunately, so far, I have never had to contend with a suspicious finding. I hope I never have to make a choice about such a result, but if I did, I would consult all the research to make a fully informed decision about risks of cancer versus risks of treatments. And I would want my physicians to be informed and direct with me about options.

So, let’s take women’s health seriously. Spare us the euphemisms and respect us as adults who can handle whatever life throws at us.

Evelyn Herwitz blogs weekly about living fully with chronic disease, the inside of baseballs, turtles and frogs, J.S. Bach, the meaning of life and whatever else she happens to be thinking about at livingwithscleroderma.com. Please view Privacy Policy here.

Image: Arisa Chattasa

High Wind Warning

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Monday morning. I awake to wind, rushing and subsiding, like an angry tide. A quick check of the weather forecast on my phone reveals high wind warnings all day, with gusts over 50 miles per hour throughout the afternoon. I have to drive into Boston for an evening class. I imagine a tiring commute, fighting the wind, but am determined to go, despite plummeting temperatures.

As I make the bed and bandage my chronic thumb ulcers, I listen to the The Daily podcast by the New York Times. Today’s topic: whoever controls the incipient 5G network, which will integrate all things hooked to the Internet—self-driving cars, smart TVs, home security systems, communications networks, the power grid, artificial intelligence, our brains—will basically control the world. This is the new Cold War. The wind howls outside. I sit cross-legged on the floor, try to quiet my mind and meditate.

While cooking oatmeal and boiling hot water for tea, I call the lab that has sent me two invoices for recent bloodwork stating that we owe $150 because the claims were rejected by our insurance. This happened while our COBRA administrator had not yet told our insurance company that we had renewed our policy back in January, so I have to get the lab to resubmit.

I work my way through their phone tree until I reach the customer service line, which promptly puts me on hold. I put the call on speaker and stir the oatmeal. Winds rush through trees and around corners. I sit down at the kitchen table, sip my tea and begin to eat my comfort food. Peppy music crackles through the phone, interrupted momentarily by a male voice: We apologize for the delay. A customer representative will be with you soon. Your call will be taken in the order it was received.

Over the cycling music, another male voice cheerfully ticks off all the possible lab tests I could consider: prenatal screening with a non-invasive blood test that could inform expectant parents of any chromosomal abnormalities at ten weeks, an eight year risk analysis for diabetes, a comprehensive heart health profile. I wonder about lab test results in a world of 5G interconnectivity. Who will have access to what about me in the future? Who does already?

Eight minutes in, a woman takes my call. She asks for the invoice number, my name, address, insurance policy ID, group ID (name, rank, serial number). I answer. She goes silent. The wind rushes outside the kitchen windows. She tells me to disregard the invoices and that the claims will be resubmitted. I hang up, finish what’s left of my oatmeal, rip the invoices in half and text Al the good news.

I think about the bits of data shooting from my fingers through the Internet to his phone. I think about the digital footprint of this blog, drifting forever in cyberspace. I think about a video clip of three horses galloping away from a swirling wind turbine, seconds before it disintegrates in a powerful storm. As I type, the evergreen boughs of the yew beyond my office window chop and sway in the rushing wind.

Evelyn Herwitz blogs weekly about living fully with chronic disease, the inside of baseballs, turtles and frogs, J.S. Bach, the meaning of life and whatever else she happens to be thinking about at livingwithscleroderma.com. Please view Privacy Policy here.

Image: Benny Jackson

Midwinter Break

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It’s been a busy, snowy weekend—but the best kind of snow. Lovely, fluffy, not too messy or inconvenient. I’m taking a mini midwinter break from writing my blog this week, so I simply share with you one image of the snow on the rhododendron by our back door. Sometimes the greatest beauty is found in the simplest places. Have a good week.

Evelyn Herwitz blogs weekly about living fully with chronic disease, the inside of baseballs, turtles and frogs, J.S. Bach, the meaning of life and whatever else she happens to be thinking about at livingwithscleroderma.com. Please view Privacy Policy here.

In the Purple Zone

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It’s been a yoyo week of weather, bouncing from seasonal cold to single digits to the fifties today. I’ve had Raynaud’s for so long that I barely notice the constantly changing cold sensations in my hands and feet⎯unless they go numb, of course.

But over the weekend, a friend asked me for some advice for her teenage daughter, who has developed the tell-tale signs of primary Raynaud’s (as opposed to secondary Raynaud’s, which, as the term suggests, is caused by another underlying condition such as scleroderma). When she is cold or stressed, her fingers turn purple, sometimes white and painful.

So this gave me pause as I reviewed for my friend what I’ve learned over the years. Given the crazy cold weather across the country, it’s worth repeating for those who may be new to the condition:

  • Keep your torso warm. While your first thought may be to focus on your hands, if you protect your torso from the cold, your extremities will have access to better blood circulation. Layers are key, here, and the type of fiber matters. Which brings me to . . .
  • Favor natural fibers for clothing. Cotton and wool both wick away moisture and allow skin to breathe. Polyester and other synthetics trap perspiration and can make you feel chilled. Silk is lightweight and has the dual advantage of keeping you warm in winter and cool in summer. I have a silk liner T-shirt that I’ve worn in extremely cold weather for decades; the investment pays off.
  • Get mittens. They may not fit your fashion sense, but they definitely keep your hands warmer than gloves. Avoid synthetic fur liners. Look for insulated mittens that repel moisture. Some people favor battery-heated mittens, the kind you get at hunting stores, but I have never used them.
  • Use wrist-warmers. My favorite brand is Wristies, affordable fleece warmers that come in all different colors, in various lengths, even with pockets for heat packs. I use them year-round, to keep my hands warm in winter and protect them from air conditioning in summer.
  • Wear a hat. Just as keeping your torso warm helps your extremities, so does wearing a hat on cold days. This was one of the first tips I got from my rheumatologist. Recent studies place heat loss through your head at about seven to ten percent. It’s the common sense reason behind old fashioned nightcaps (which I don’t wear) and a good excuse for buying a nice hat (which I do).
  • Wear properly fitted shoes. Pinched toes restrict circulation, which can exacerbate Raynaud’s vasoconstriction. I also look for shoes that breathe, which is why, even as I don’t eat meat, I prefer leather footwear for winter.
  • Turn up the heat. This is a mortal sin for many hardy New Englanders, but I’m fortunate to be married to a local who accepts my need for a warm house and the associated expense (even as we strive to be environmentally responsible with attic insulation and good windows). As I said to my friend about her daughter, take her complaints seriously that the house is too cold. She’s not whining. It’s real.
  • See your doctor. If your hands or feet are consistently numb and you’re experiencing persistent discomfort or pain, talk to your doctor. Protect breaks in the skin, as poor circulation can lead to ulcers that won’t heal and may get infected. There are a range of medications that can counter vasoconstriction, but you’ll need to experiment to see what works and if it’s worth it for you.

Evelyn Herwitz blogs weekly about living fully with chronic disease, the inside of baseballs, turtles and frogs, J.S. Bach, the meaning of life and whatever else she happens to be thinking about at livingwithscleroderma.com. Please view Privacy Policy here.

Image: invisiblepower

Grand Entrance

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Almost every Wednesday night, I take a break from writing and join friends at a nearby weaving studio. It’s kind of like an old-fashioned quilting bee, sharing stories as we work on our individual looms, creating Saori textiles, a form of Japanese freestyle weaving. It’s meditative and relaxing and a good reminder that beauty is everywhere around us.

Just one problem: I have a backlog of woven pieces at home, waiting for me complete them. For months, my colorful textiles have been lying in a pile on one of our dining room chairs, taunting me.

“When are you going to get around to us?” they seem to ask. “You were so enthusiastic when you took us off the loom. What gives? Don’t you care anymore?”

Well, yes, but there’s been so much else to do.

“No excuse! Your hands have healed. You can do this!”

One piece, in particular, has waited nearly eight months for me to complete⎯a bright, multicolored textile to replace the tattered curtain on our kitchen door. Last spring I had come close to completing it, machine sewing a yellow cotton border to the sides. Then, in a rush to finish (always a bad idea), I had flipped over the top edge to make a channel for the curtain rod, but stitched the fringed edge to the back instead of the front.

Picking out all those stitches was more than I could handle. I also realized that, even with the yellow border, the piece was still too narrow to cover the kitchen window. Discouraged, I put it aside and didn’t touch it again until my younger daughter came home for a visit over the December holidays and, with her very nimble fingers, took out the stitches for me.

Buoyed by this fix, I bought some turquoise cotton fabric to extend the edges. And this weekend, I finished the curtain, with the help of a new iron (I’d dropped my old one and broken it sometime over the summer), a more accessible storage solution for my ironing board (no more dragging it up from the basement) and some fusible sewing tape that enabled me to avoid using pins, which I find quite difficult to manipulate.

Persistence paid off. The result makes me smile. And it’s a cheerful reminder that, despite last year’s major hand surgery and months of healing, I can still make something beautiful.

Before . . .
. . . and after!

Evelyn Herwitz blogs weekly about living fully with chronic disease, the inside of baseballs, turtles and frogs, J.S. Bach, the meaning of life and whatever else she happens to be thinking about at livingwithscleroderma.com. Please view Privacy Policy here.