Hey there! I’m Maegen, an ACE-certified personal trainer. I am a wife and mother to 3 kids and lots of fur babies. I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis in January of 2019 at the age of 35.
As with many people who are diagnosed with RA it is a long process
For me it started when I was about 15 years old, I lost an extreme amount of weight, I was exhausted and losing hair by the handfuls. My mom thought I had an eating disorder but it was far from that. I ate all the time and had no idea what was wrong with my body. There was a point when I was 16 that I was sleeping for about 18 hours a day and still falling asleep in class. Thankfully things didn’t stay that bad. I got married, moved out and my health started to improve. I look back over the years and see where there were times I had a flair, like when I was pregnant with my kids. December 2016-February 2017 my husband almost passed away from Pancreatitis. Stress is a huge factor for RA and I believe this was what ended up leading to me getting diagnosed several years later.
Getting Diagnosed with RA
In the Summer of 2018, my health took a turn for the worst. My husband was begging me to go to the Dr. I finally caved in when it got to the point I was no longer able to carry groceries, wash dishes, hold weights in the gym, and complete everyday activities. This is the point where my general practitioner did blood work and all of my markers in my blood showed I had RA. In January of 2019, I was able to get into see my Rheumatologist, get sonograms of my hands to confirm, and start treatment.
I went through a point where I was not ready to accept the reality of this disease. My doctor told me I was in denial. I didn’t want to take Methotrexate. I didn’t like this situation. I started on Methotrexate and Prednisone. Methotrexate made me extremely sick. I was dizzy (unable to drive, falling off curbs when walking kinda dizzy), sick to my stomach, headache, sleeping non stop. I was then put on Hydroxychloroquine and leflunomide. They did wonderful for a short period but sadly by 2020 I was back in pain.
Getting Certified
At this point I was deep into my love for fitness, I loved weight lifting. My body wasn’t doing what I had been. It wasn’t capable. I found that I needed connection with others that were going through the same thing as me. I found I needed more knowledge on how to treat my body. What was and wasn’t ok. This drove me to become a Certified personal trainer specializing in Rheumatoid Arthritis.
June 2021 I started Remicade infusions which is where I am today. I am looking forward to my next infusion. Hopeful that this is what puts me into remission. The first infusion made me very sick the day of but by the next morning, I was bursting with energy. It was such an extremely exciting feeling