I am All Fur Coat and RA. Chronic Seropositive Rheumatoid Arthritis is just one of a plethora of my fancy autoimmune conditions. Diagnosed as a kid over 25 years ago, I have led a weird parallel life which looks the same as everyone else’s but one that is full of pain, restriction, degeneration, hospitals, chemotherapy and the even more wonderful ‘smart drugs’ or biologics. Fun! Actually it can be fun, having a sense of humour is essential to survive any chronic illness!

Inevitably though I have also come across many equally painful barriers and attitudes in society, as have all of my friends with Rheumatoid Arthritis and other chronic illnesses. These encounters can almost be as painful as the actual illness itself which is ultimately trying to kill us via our immune system attacking all of the organs, bones, muscles, blood and everything in between, in our bodies. But this is not enough to some people if you do not fit their ignorant stereotype of what a disabled person looks like.

Fuelled by an awful personal experience of disability discrimination whilst visiting The Last Leg at ITV studios this year, I write to raise awareness and kick ass on attitudes to hidden illness and the outdated stereotypes of disability. I love to hear your experiences too and strive to reply to as many of you as I can, you can also follow me on Twitter @AllFurCoatandRA and Facebook All Fur Coat and RA 😘

Oh, I am also a foodie, there may be a future blog post which combines disability and food which could get messy…