Name : Catrina Hawkins
E-mail : mailto:hawkins.catrina@yahoo.com
Adult: 28 years old
Location: Noble, Missouri
Area(s) affected: right shoulder, arm, wrist, thumb and fingers
Personal History:
My
mother noticed something was different with my right thumb when I first started
trying to write. My thumb was shorter and "fat" in appearance. She said it was
hard for me to hold those big pencils I learned to write with. It didn't hurt me
at the time so we never thought much more about it. About the time I was 12 or
13 I started having a lot of pain. I was waking up througout the night with
pain, numbness, and tingling. I would have to sit up or hang my arm over the
bed in order to get the circulation flowing. I was diagnosed at age 13 by
Arkansas Children's Hospital in 1995. I felt like a lab rat, XR after XR. It
was so rare and new to all the doctors. All they could do was experiment with
different things and hope for the best. I tried different anti-inflammatories,
braces, ROM exercises. I'm sorry to say none of these worked.
The pain comes and goes. Unfortunately it's there more than it isn't. Thoughout the years, my ROM has decreased and I've just recently had a bone scan showing progression. I take pain medicine sometimes and that will help some, but there are times when it just has to go away on its own. Sometimes it seems as if nothing will work. I have noticed the weather plays a huge part in the pain. When it is cold I will ache more. I will use a heating pad and that seems to relax the tension.
I have
not had any surgeries but can see it as a possibility in the future. I feel
lucky to still have partial use of my right hand and arm. I feel as though I
function well on a daily bases and try to do the best I can with what I have. I
have read many personal histories and my heart goes out to each and every one.