GB: What role do
you think attitude plays in caring
for yourself or loved one when
you’re living with arthritis?
DM: Attitude has
a great deal to do with your health,
period. One of the great things
about the treatments that are
available now is that they allow you
to continue to keep moving. That’s
the key with arthritis. If you stop
exercising, if you stop being
active, the joints will just freeze
up and become worse and worse. When
I exercise, I find that I always
feel better, and my attitude is so
much better; so exercise plays a
huge part with how your mental
attitude is, If your mental attitude
is good, then your whole life
lightens up and looks good.
GB: Do you have
any advice for caregivers dealing
with arthritis on a daily basis,
whether it’s for themselves or their
loved ones?
DM: I often get
the same type of question at the
seminars, and it’s “My wife has
arthritis, but I don’t. How can I
get her to go to the doctor?” I
always say, “First, tell her you
love her, give her a big hug, and
then tell her there’s hope, and that
she doesn’t have to be in pain. That
your relationship and everything
will be so much better if she can
get out of pain; and there’s a way
to do it now by seeing the doctor.”
It starts with love. People get
cranky toward each other when pain
is involved, and that’s not good for
any relationship.
