My great-aunt used to always say, "If you don't have your health, you don't have anything." This is a true statement. You need your health to do anything else. She started telling me this after I was diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis when I was 16, and she was concerned maybe I wasn't being as conscientious about taking my medication as I should (but, I actually was). Even though I eventually had to have both of my knees replaced, I've been pretty healthy in spite of the arthritis, and have lead a normal life. I've never let it stop me from doing anything I wanted to do.

I'm still looking for a good natural way to treat it. The most promising method I tried in my early 20's ended up almost killing me. Not everything is right for everyone. I'm a natural health expert at this point. You name it, I've probably tried it.

Avoiding stress, dairy, and fried foods, and loading up on ant-inflammatory foods like turmeric seems to work best for me so far. I can go longer between doses of medication when I stay chill and eat well.