Life with Rheumatoid Arthritis in Three Continents: Maria's Story

<h1>Episode at a glance</h1><ul><li><strong>Art and arthritis: </strong>Maria shares how she participates in artistic hobbies like photography and artwork despite hand pain from rheumatoid arthritis</li><li><strong>Diagnosis journey:</strong> Maria’s diagnosis journey with rheumatoid arthritis in Venezuela and her emotional reaction to the diagnosis at age twenty one</li><li><strong>Managing expectations: </strong>Maria and Cheryl discuss what it’s like to try to manage your expectations and plan your life when diagnosed with RA so young</li><li><strong>College and international studies: T</strong>he difficulties of managing rheumatoid arthritis while being a college student in the USA, including barriers to medication</li><li><strong>Social media:</strong> Cheryl & Maria reflect on the benefits and drawbacks of social media, both having been diagnosed prior to social media</li><li><strong>Maria moves to Australia:</strong> the scarcity of medication and resources in Venezuala leads Maria and her husband to move to Australia</li><li><strong>Pregnancy and parenting with rheumatoid arthritis: </strong>Maria shares her journey with pregnancy and parenting her two girls with severe pain from rheumatoid arthritis</li><li><strong>Remission: </strong>Maria shares the happy news of her current remission and how that’s improved her quality of life.</li><li><strong>“Auch Revista”</strong> - Maria explains why she started this non-profit Spanish language magazine to share stories and tips for others living with chronic illnesses.</li></ul><h1>Speaker Bios:</h1><p>Maria Gonzales has lived with rheumatoid arthritis since she was twenty one years old. Throughout the years she has lived on three continents with RA. She also graduated college and had two babies while managing rheumatoid arthritis. She has experienced everything from excruciating pain to a current remission. She enjoys sharing her journey with others and started the “<a href="https://issuu.com/auch.revista">Auch Revista</a>” (translation: Ouch Magazine), a non-pr