PA Patient in the news

[luvwinnie]

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/subscriber/life/story/3817255p-4415444c.html

[MikeK]

Thanks for this incredible article Michele. Since links to newspaper articles sometimes stop working, I'm posting a copy of the complete article here.

This is an amazing article about an amazing man. Thanks again.

Mike

Arthritis patient goes extra mile to aid research
City man plans to ignore pain, run Arizona marathon

Mon Dec 18 2006

By Nisha Tuli

MOST marathon runners experience pain after a race, but Gary Gobeil experiences pain every day of his life -- and long before the race begins.

Gobeil, 41, who lives with a rare form of arthritis, wakes up in so much pain every morning, he requires 45 minutes of stretching just to make it through the day.

He can no longer participate in baseball, hockey or many of the other things he once loved to do, including running. But this winter, despite the pain he lives with, Gobeil will run in his first half-marathon in Arizona, while raising thousands of dollars for arthritis research.

He first got the idea when his then-girlfriend offered to run for him as part of the Arthritis Society's Joints in Motion Team.

"I was so touched," says Gobeil, "but unfortunately it never happened," because they broke up. Shortly after that, Gobeil's friend, Jason Morton, offered to run the New York Marathon in his honour.

"Again, I was touched, but it was then I learned you could do half-marathons, too, to raise money instead of just full ones. I decided that I had to do it myself," says Gobeil, who will run in PF Chang's Rock 'n' Roll Arizona Marathon on Jan 14.

"Ever since I developed arthritis, I haven't been able to run like I was once able to," continues Gobeil. "When you have a chronic illness, it changes your way of life. It leads to grieving over loss -- loss of the ability to do certain things you once found so simple and took for granted."

Gobeil has psoriatic arthritis, which is a less common form of the illness, and affects about 30 per cent of people with the skin condition psoriasis. It causes pain and swelling around the joints, and unlike its better-known form, rheumatoid arthritis, it also causes inflammation in the tissue surrounding the joints, including the tendons and ligaments. It means Gobeil may not be able to walk one day.

The illness has affected Gobeil's entire body, as it has spread through his back, neck, hips, knees, elbows and hands.

"I had surgery to fix my hand, to straighten my finger, but it bent right back to a 45-degree angle. It hurts too much to even open a jar any more," says Gobeil.

"My hands and feet are disfigured to the point I have to wear orthotics to prevent my toes from dragging." Orthotics are rigid inserts worn in his shoes that help stabilize his feet and knees.

"The pavement made it very hard to run outside, but better technology in shoes has made it so I can again," he says.

After speaking with his doctor, Gobeil began to start slowly training for the race. "I hadn't run outside for 12 years. I had to start slow. In fact I will probably end up walking a lot of the race -- that's what my doctor has recommended," he says, "but it doesn't matter, the important thing is that I'm doing it."

Sponsored by the Arthritis Society, Joints in Motion allows individuals to participate in various marathons across North America as they raise money for arthritis research in honour of a friend or loved one.

Gobeil will be running the Arizona half-marathon for himself and his aunt, who has rheumatoid arthritis. He is about halfway to his fundraising goal. "I have to raise $4,000 for Joints in Motion. My biggest donation came from my mom, who wanted it to be a gift from my father and her. He passed away earlier this year."

Gobeil says that he won't be looking at the clock during the race. "The bigger reason I'm doing this is to prove to myself that I can do it. It's been a rough year and running has become my therapy. I think it will be very emotional for me when I cross the finish line."

If you would like to make an online donation, visit arthritis.ca/jointsinmotion, or call 292-4952 to learn more about Gobeil's fundraising efforts.

nisha.tuli@freepress.mb.ca

[forestal]

thanks for the link/article, good that some of the message is getting out there...

im surprised at how many patients with P i meet who have joint issues and never knew what it was/or were told to see a rheum...

educating patients and doctors about it is important

[MaryJean713]

Thank you so much for this article! I am recently diagnosed with PA at 25. It has aggressively taken over my entire body.

This article has brought tears to my eyes. It makes me feel so good that this person is able to run the marathon!

I have been so depressed- feeling that my life as I know it is over- this has given me hope!

Thank you so much.

MJ

[ouchyk]

This is a wonderful article indeed! Thanks for posting it.

We have a group member who has p/pa.....He's done so well on ENBREL that he's running the Boston Marathon this year. 26 miles, including " heartbreak hill " ...just amazing!

We're SOOOOOOOOO proud of him! :)


Karen