Fwd: [rcwalkrocks] DNJ Article/FYI

[Guest guest]

Hi,

This is an article from our local paper.I just wanted to forward it along.I wish the picture had come through because Garett could be Josh's twin or atleast brother.

They are going to be interviewing also.Our walk is realy focusing on educating the public about childhood arthritis.

Hugs

Becki and 5 systemic

I don't know if the picture will show up...

Walking for a cure

By Jeanne Dees / Lifestyles Reporter of The Daily News Journal

Garrett isn’t the most physically active fourth-grader at Erma Siegel

Elementary. But on May 1, he’ll walk alongside his mother, father and siblings

in the Rutherford County Arthritis Walk.

Garrett is a big supporter of the Arthritis Foundation’s annual event, because

he knows firsthand the difficulties that come along with rheumatoid arthritis.

The walk will begin at 8:30 a.m. at the York VA Medical Center in Murfreesboro.

On-site registration will begin an hour earlier, though individuals and teams

can preregister online at www.arthritis.org, or by calling 254-6795.

Participants may choose either a 5K or 1-mile route.

Garrett was only 2 years old when he began feeling the pain of systemic juvenile

rheumatoid arthritis. His parents knew something was wrong when the toddler

started experiencing bouts of extreme pain and quit walking almost completely.

He also ran fevers day and night and cried in agony every time anyone tried to

pick him up.

Doctors had a hard time figuring out what was ailing this otherwise healthy

child, so they admitted him to the hospital to observe his symptoms. They

investigated ominous possibilities like leukemia while Garrett’s mom and dad

feared the worst and suffered the anxiety of not knowing.

“We were horrified, and I was pregnant with my daughter at the time,” recalls

Jane .

As one explanation after another was disproven, the suspicion came about that

Garrett’s troubles could be linked to juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. But the

disease couldn’t be detected by testing, so the tot would have to be treated for

it if doctors were to confirm or rule out the diagnosis. To some relief, steroid

treatments and anti-inflammatory arthritis medications eased the 2-year-old’s

pain significantly.

Nine years later, Garrett continues to depend on a collection of drugs to combat

the inflammation in his joints. Each morning, Jane and Garrett’s father, Melvin,

observe their younger son’s behavior to determine how they’ll go about the rest

of their day.

“If he doesn’t get out of bed on his own, it’s bad. If that’s the case, we do

get him his medication right away,” says Jane.

Most days, though, the child is the first person awake in the house,

even if he hurts too much to stroll comfortably out of his room.

“I waddle,” he says, “sometimes I crawl,” he adds, “or I just slide my feet

along.”

The cause of juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA) is unknown, though some in the

medical community speculate that perhaps it can be triggered by a stressful

event or a virus.

Garrett is one of the estimated 10 percent of children with JRA whose arthritis

is labeled “systematic.” That means the inflammation spreads to joints

throughout his body. True to form, Garrett’s disease brings discomfort to his

hips and thighs in the mornings, and by mid-day, he usually hurts all over.

Jane estimates that her son’s pain is about 90 percent controlled most of the

time, but she worries about the long-term effects of the medicines he must take.

Steroid-based drugs play a key role in Garrett’s ongoing treatment, but they’re

known to stunt growth. This unfortunate circumstance adds growth hormones to the

fourth-grader’s already lengthy list of drugs and supplements.

“I take Remicade, methotrexate, folic acid, Advil ... and what’s that shot I get

today?” he asks his mother.

Whatever it is, he might or might not still be getting it a year from now.

Any effective combination of treatments can, over time, lose its potency against

arthritis, and patients are forced to try new medications.

“We’ve tried four or five different things,” says Jane. “We’ve also had to

eliminate drugs that didn’t work for him.”

Because the disease damages joints over time, Garrett may face hip replacement

or knee surgery in the future. Some incidents of JRA have ended in inexplicable

remission, however.

Garrett doesn’t acknowledge much disappointment, but he admits that he would

like to play more football. Usually, stiffness in his joints makes it impossible

for him to even run, but every now and then, he’ll give it a shot — at the price

of his comfort the next day.

Jane, an at-home mother, and Melvin, a podiatrist, know that they could talk

their son out of testing his limitations. They go light on the lectures, though,

because they want him to have a happy and memorable childhood.

“Most of the time we just let him be a kid,” says Jane.

On many of those days when Garrett isn’t the early bird, he stays home from

school.

“I do miss a lot of days,” he says. But that way, he smiles, “I get more time to

read.”

But when arthritis allows him the flexibility to get around the class

comfortably, Garrett cheerfully joins his friends at school.

“They get his papers for him and sharpen his pencil for him and return his

library books for him when he’s in a lot of pain,” Jane says.

At this, Garrett breaks into another cheerful grin, and his mother says,

“Garrett has an amazing personality and spirit. He is very mature about the

disease.”

PHOTO INFO:

The family is devoted to helping find a cure for young Garrett’s

juvenile rheumatoid arthritis and will participate in the May 1 Rutherford

County Arthritis Walk. Garrett, far right, is shown here at his Murfreesboro

home with family members, from left, his brother Brenden, his mother Jane, his

sister Hailey and his father Melvin. (DNJ photo by Micah )

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[Guest guest]

Becki,

Great article, thanks for sharing. Im looking forward to reading s.

Hugs Helen, mom to (6,systemic)

p.s how is today, any hives??

Hugs..Helen DH Dan DS's (20)(14)(12)Zachary(9)(6)

DD (4)>From: Arthurnator@... >Reply- > , Rustyroom >Subject: Fwd: [rcwalkrocks] DNJ Article/FYI >Date: Mon, 23 Feb 2004 14:58:09 EST > >Hi, >This is an article from our local paper.I just wanted to forward it along.I >wish the picture had come through because Garett could be Josh's twin or >atleast brother. >They are going to be interviewing also.Our walk is realy focusing on >educating the public about childhood arthritis. >Hugs >Becki and 5 systemic ><< message5.txt >> Dream of owning a home? Find out how in the First-time Home Buying Guide.

[Guest guest]

Hi Georgina,

The photos didn't come through anyones computer.Dr. just tried to add it.I have your phone #.I could snail mail you an original copy.In the mean time I will go to our papers site and try and relocate it and see if there is the pictures.

Garett is younger(10).From the pictures of Josh he just realy resembles him.I can guarantee if the two were together people would think they were brothers.

Hugs

Backi and 5 systemic

[Guest guest]

Hi Georgina,

It wont let me pull up the article.You have to be an online subscriber.I can still mail it to you.

Hugs

Becki and 5 systemic