Natalie Decker is aChronic Strength Champion, which means she doesn’t just take control of her pain — she battles back. Read to learn how Natalie is driven to overcome her rheumatoid arthritis.
Most of my life, I’ve known two things for certain: 1) I always wanted to be a NASCAR driver; and 2) being born with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA) would not stop me from pursuing a fulfilling, active life. Now, at the age of 24, I can happily say I’ve followed through on my commitments to both, as one of the top young drivers on the NASCAR scene and an advocate for other arthritis patients to follow their dreams.
The road to managing RA
Getting to this place in my life has been full of ups and downs. After being diagnosed with JRA at the age of 2, I began a high dosage of a chemo drug once a week for over 10 years. It made me very tired, gave me headaches and left me feeling sick and nauseous all the time. Around the age of 12, I went into remission and got off the medication.
Throughout this time, I continued to stay active. In fact, my pediatrician couldn’t believe all that I could do as a child. Whether it was dance, hockey, soccer or go-kart racing, he told me that the activities should have been physically impossible for me to do, and yet, I persisted. I learned early on the importance of having a great support system and believing in myself to achieve whatever I put my mind to. This helped me manage the symptoms of my disease and stay active while also pursuing my dream of becoming a NASCAR driver.
今天，管理我的助教看起来不一样了。不久前我的病情缓解了，疼痛和僵硬比我年轻时严重得多。我正在学习如何照顾自己，并在一天中建立有规律的休息。Racing in my car for hours at a time in one position can be painful, so I must be prepared, learn how to recover fast and know my limitations in the gym. The Arthritis Foundation’sVim apphas been a helpful tool in setting and tracking goals and accessing the latest information for pain management. Like many patients with RA, I’m currently on infusions to manage the symptoms.
Building a community
在我成长的过程中，我的父母并不知道关节炎基金会和它提供的所有好处，但我很幸运，在我的整个过程中，我的家人都支持我。我们会在周末去各地参加赛车比赛，在那里我们遇到的每个人都成了我们的大家庭。它帮助我努力工作，追求我的梦想，知道我的支持者在为我加油。
Because I know how important it is to have that community in place, I’ve made it my commitment to partnering with the Arthritis Foundation to help give kids the support they need — just like I did. I’ve become involved with Live Yes!Connect Groupsand theJA camps(my favorite!) and see firsthand the immense benefits they provide to young patients. While I wish I had known about them growing up, it’s now my mission to help ensure that other kids go to camp and have access to the resources, local programs and support they need through the Arthritis Foundation.
Having a community of support is so important to empowering young people to chase their dreams and live a full life. For a long time, I was hesitant to share my story, but I’m so grateful for the opportunity to share it now and hopefully play a small role in inspiring others. Together with the Arthritis Foundation and the public’s help, we can change lives!