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Cheap Custom Gifts | Kate the (Almost) Great, Health Lifestyle Blog
in Lifestyle &middot November 20, 2020

Cheap Custom Gifts (All Under $50!)

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in Lifestyle &middot November 20, 2020

Cheap Custom Gifts (All Under $50!)

Cheap Custom Gifts | Kate the (Almost) Great, Health Lifestyle Blog

This post contains affiliate links. Thank you for supporting Kate the (Almost) Great! It's that time! Time for gift guides. Every Friday up to Christmas, I will have a new ... Read the Post...

What You Need To Know about Living with Chronic Pain in the Winter
in Health &middot November 13, 2020

What You Need To Know about Living with Chronic Pain in the Winter

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in Health &middot November 13, 2020

What You Need To Know about Living with Chronic Pain in the Winter

What You Need To Know about Living with Chronic Pain in the Winter

There are an estimated 100 million Americans living with chronic pain, which can be anything from having a general "bad back" to specific illnesses like endometriosis. ... Read the Post...

Text reads: Buy my ebook for chronic health bloggers, worth $140, but buy for $10! There is also an image of the ebook cover. The ebook is named "Take Your Blog (And Income!) To The Next Level: Resources for Chronic Health Bloggers".
56 Gluten-Free Holiday Recipes To Make This Year | Kate the (Almost) Great, Health Lifestyle
in Lifestyle &middot November 10, 2020

56 Gluten-Free Holiday Recipes To Make This Year

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in Lifestyle &middot November 10, 2020

56 Gluten-Free Holiday Recipes To Make This Year

56 Gluten-Free Holiday Recipes To Make This Year | Kate the (Almost) Great, Health Lifestyle

With the holidays coming up, there is a lot of cooking on the horizon. But holiday cooking can be tricky when you can't eat gluten, or if you're cooking for someone who can't. ... Read the Post...

The Benefits of a Social Media Editorial Calendar: October 2020 Blog Traffic Report
in Writing & Blogging &middot November 6, 2020

The Benefits of a Social Media Editorial Calendar: October Blog Traffic Report

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in Writing & Blogging &middot November 6, 2020

The Benefits of a Social Media Editorial Calendar: October Blog Traffic Report

The Benefits of a Social Media Editorial Calendar: October 2020 Blog Traffic Report

For years, I very intentionally planned my social media content along with my blog content. But 2 years ago, I stopped. I had too much going on! I started doing them again in ... Read the Post...

Holiday Survival Guide: Living Well with Chronic Disease
in Health &middot October 30, 2020

Holiday Survival Guide: Living Well with Chronic Disease

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in Health &middot October 30, 2020

Holiday Survival Guide: Living Well with Chronic Disease

Holiday Survival Guide: Living Well with Chronic Disease

My friends, it is my favorite time of the year: the holidays! To me, the holiday season is Halloween through New Years. Obviously the holidays are going to look different this ... Read the Post...

2020 Recent Reads: July-September
in Lifestyle &middot October 27, 2020

2020 Recent Reads: July-September

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in Lifestyle &middot October 27, 2020

2020 Recent Reads: July-September

2020 Recent Reads: July-September

We are three quarters through 2020!! Thank goodness, right? That also means that it's time for me to share what I read in quarter 3, aka July, August, and September. I didn't ... Read the Post...

What's Heat Intolerance? An Explanation | Kate the (Almost) Great
in Health &middot October 20, 2020

What’s Heat Intolerance? An Explanation

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in Health &middot October 20, 2020

What’s Heat Intolerance? An Explanation

What's Heat Intolerance? An Explanation | Kate the (Almost) Great

Just because we're in the cooler half of the year doesn't mean you can't deal with heat intolerance! (Plus, if you're in the southern hemisphere, you're heading into summer.) ... Read the Post...

4 Creative Ways To Grow Blog Traffic: September Blog Traffic Report
in Writing & Blogging &middot October 9, 2020

4 Creative Ways To Grow Blog Traffic: September Blog Traffic Report

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in Writing & Blogging &middot October 9, 2020

4 Creative Ways To Grow Blog Traffic: September Blog Traffic Report

4 Creative Ways To Grow Blog Traffic: September Blog Traffic Report

The longer I blog, the trickier it is to grow your blog. By this point, I've tried all of the obvious ways, and so I've had to get a bit creative this year. In September, I ... Read the Post...

What Does Arthritis Pain Feel Like?
in Health &middot October 2, 2020

What Does Arthritis Pain Actually Feel Like?

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in Health &middot October 2, 2020

What Does Arthritis Pain Actually Feel Like?

What Does Arthritis Pain Feel Like?

One of the hallmarks of arthritis is, of course, pain. If you don't know anything about arthritis, you probably know that pain is involved. But what a lot of people don't ... Read the Post...

12 Boston Small Businesses To Support | Kate the (Almost) Great
in Lifestyle &middot September 25, 2020

12 Boston Small Businesses To Support

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in Lifestyle &middot September 25, 2020

12 Boston Small Businesses To Support

12 Boston Small Businesses To Support | Kate the (Almost) Great

It's always a good idea to support small businesses, but that's especially true now in the age of COVID-19. With that in mind, I've pulled together a list of 12 Boston small ... Read the Post...

50+ Incredible Free Blog Resources | Health + Lifestyle Blog
in Writing & Blogging &middot September 18, 2020

50+ Incredible Free Blog Resources

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in Writing & Blogging &middot September 18, 2020

50+ Incredible Free Blog Resources

50+ Incredible Free Blog Resources | Health + Lifestyle Blog

I have been blogging since 2013, and seriously since 2015. The more I learn about blogging, the more I know that there is an unending amount of information to learn. To help ... Read the Post...

19 Retellings of Classic Fiction You Need To Read | Kate the (Almost) Great, Health Lifestyle Blog
in Lifestyle &middot September 11, 2020

19 Retellings of Classic Fiction You Need To Read

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in Lifestyle &middot September 11, 2020

19 Retellings of Classic Fiction You Need To Read

19 Retellings of Classic Fiction You Need To Read | Kate the (Almost) Great, Health Lifestyle Blog

I have been a big fan of classic fiction since at least the 5th grade. But a type of fiction that I've also read a fair amount of is retellings, which are basically when a ... Read the Post...

How To Get Blog Traffic: Report for August 2020
in Writing & Blogging &middot September 8, 2020

How To Get Blog Traffic: Report for August 2020

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in Writing & Blogging &middot September 8, 2020

How To Get Blog Traffic: Report for August 2020

How To Get Blog Traffic: Report for August 2020

Happy September! I'm so glad that summer is unofficially over. Next up: fall! But first, I have my last blog traffic report of summer 2020. Read up how to get blog traffic in ... Read the Post...

We Need To Talk about the "Disease Warrior" Model | Kate the (Almost) Great
in Health &middot September 4, 2020

We Need To Talk about the “Disease Warrior” Model

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in Health &middot September 4, 2020

We Need To Talk about the “Disease Warrior” Model

We Need To Talk about the "Disease Warrior" Model | Kate the (Almost) Great

Something that I have never been able to quite put my finger on how I feel about it is the "disease warrior" model. In its simplest form - and I am definitely going to get ... Read the Post...

Resume Tips: 5 Tactics for Putting Advocacy on Your Resume
in Lifestyle &middot August 28, 2020

Resume Tips: 5 Tactics for Putting Advocacy on Your Resume

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in Lifestyle &middot August 28, 2020

Resume Tips: 5 Tactics for Putting Advocacy on Your Resume

Resume Tips: 5 Tactics for Putting Advocacy on Your Resume

Advocacy experience is a great things to have for a variety of reasons. One of which is that it makes a great addition to your resume! But how do you include it? I've included ... Read the Post...

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  • The Lifestyle Changes I Made for My Rheumatoid Arthritis
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Reminder: you can be proud of your disability comm Reminder: you can be proud of your disability community while wishing your body cooperated more⁣
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⬛⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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I’m Kate, a chronic illness patient and advocate sharing what my life is like with 10+ chronic illnesses. Follow me for more and check out my blog at katethealmostgreat.com⁣⁣.⁣
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 ID: Screenshot of a thread post. The background is dark teal, and it's written by katethealmostgreat. ⁣The text reads what's above the first black box.⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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#DisabilityPride #ChronicallyIll #InvisibleIllness #Disabled #Disability
I don’t know the exact date of my RA diagnosis, bu I don’t know the exact date of my RA diagnosis, but this is from right around then in July 2010. ⁣
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When I was diagnosed, I had been having symptoms for 9 years. ⁣
- 9 years of foot pain (partially from tarsal coalition)⁣
- Arthritic damage in said food⁣
- Carpal tunnel off and on for several years⁣
- And more⁣
⁣
I was finally diagnosed because I woke up one morning and was unable to open my jaw more than 8 mm. It turned out that I had horrible arthritic damage to my TMJs, which got me off the waiting list at MGH rheumatology. I left that appointment with an autoimmune arthritis diagnosis. ⁣
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The fact that July is not only my diagnosis anniversary but also Juvenile Arthritis Awareness Month has always seemed right. I may not have been diagnosed with JA, but given the amount of arthritis I had along with my many years of symptoms, it's generally accepted that I had it. ⁣
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This year marks 16 years since diagnosis and this fall marks 25 years since my symptoms started. It's pretty weird that so much time has already passed!⁣
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⬛⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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I’m Kate, a chronic illness patient and advocate sharing what my life is like with 10+ chronic illnesses. Follow me for more and check out my blog at katethealmostgreat.com⁣⁣.⁣
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ID: Kate at 19 at Fenway Park for a Red Sox game. ⁣
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#RheumatoidArthritis #AutoimmuneDisease #Arthritis #JuvenileArthritis #JRA
Dos and don'ts for when someone in your life is di Dos and don'ts for when someone in your life is diagnosed with autoimmune arthritis! What are some that you would add?⁣
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⬛⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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I’m Kate, a chronic illness patient and advocate sharing what my life is like with 10+ chronic illnesses. Follow me for more and check out my blog at katethealmostgreat.com⁣⁣.⁣
⁣
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ID: "So someone you know was diagnosed with Autoimmune Arthritis". Under the Do column (indicated with a green checkmark) is:⁣
"As how they feel about it⁣
Offer specific ways to help⁣
Treat them normally⁣
Ask follow-up questions⁣
Wear a mask around them when sick."⁣
Under the don't don't column (indicated with an x in a red circle) is:⁣
"Say “At least it’s not xyz!”⁣
Say that and not follow through⁣
Assume nothing about their lives has changed⁣
Conflate autoimmune arthritis with osteoarthritis⁣
Pass your cold to an immunosuppressed person".⁣
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#AutoimmuneDisease #RheumatoidArthritis #PsoriaticArthritis #AnkylosingSpondylitis #JuvenileArthritis
Weekj 26 of 2026 Weekly Scenes of a summer week Weekj 26 of 2026 Weekly 

Scenes of a summer week in Maine! So glad I work from home, which means I can work from my real home (Maine, if that wasn’t clear)

1️⃣ Lots of Harley time
2️⃣ Working from home means saving my PTO for fun things!
3️⃣ Lots of duck families (📸 my dad)
4️⃣ What a lot of my days look like - Harley and my current project (needlepoint). And, yes, I’m still in a cast.
5️⃣ Learned how to play Mahjong, which my parents love
6️⃣ Lake views on the 4th

⬛⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣

I’m Kate, a chronic illness patient and advocate sharing what my life is like with 10+ chronic illnesses. Follow me for more and check out my blog at katethealmostgreat.com⁣⁣.⁣⁣⁣⁣

⬛⁣⁣⁣

IDs:
1️⃣ Harley the golden retriever on a deck as seen through some plants
2️⃣ Kate takes a selfie
3️⃣ A duck with little ducklings following on a lake
4️⃣ Harley coming up to Kate. Her legs are out on an ottoman, 1 foot in a walking cast, and an in-progress needlepoint project
5️⃣ Looking down at a Mahjong table with the game set up
6️⃣ A kayak on the shore of a lake 

#MaineTheWay #MaineSummer #Needlepoint #MaineLife
Living with chronic pain is really hard. You’re wi Living with chronic pain is really hard. You’re winning every day you’re still here.⁣
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I’m Kate, a chronic illness patient and advocate sharing what my life is like with 10+ chronic illnesses. Follow me for more and check out my blog at katethealmostgreat.com⁣⁣.⁣
⁣
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ID: The background image is a lake at sunset. Text reads what's above the first square and also "katethealmostgreat".⁣
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#ChronicIllness #ChronicPain #RheumatoidArthritis #Fibromyalgia #Endometriosis
I've been spending a fair amount of time at my foo I've been spending a fair amount of time at my foot surgeon's office this year, and boy has it been messing with my head. ⁣
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I spent a lot of time from 2001-2010 dealing with my left foot. Long story short, it took until this foot surgeon saw me in 2010 after fixing this foot for me to be diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. But I spent those 9 years going from doctor to doctor, having surgery after surgery, trying to figure out what was causing my pain and to fix it. ⁣
⁣
Was it the tarsal coalition? Did I have another chronic health issue? Etc. ⁣
⁣
I spent from age 10 to 19 unsure what exactly was wrong with me and in huge amounts of pain. We thought we figured it out, and then something else happened. ⁣
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We know exactly what is wrong with this foot this time around: in 2024, I got 3 stress fractures, and no one put me in a boot. They almost fully healed before breaking in 2025, and then the same thing happened in 2026. ⁣
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This is a different part of the foot than I used to deal with, but any problems with my feet and especially my left foot messes with me. While this doctor eventually fixed the problems and even got me diagnosed with RA, every time I go back to his office, I have to fight not to become 17 again. ⁣
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PTSD is a bitch.⁣
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(PS - if you want to know why I'm going back to this guy when it messes with me, it's because I don't trust anyone else to fix my foot.)⁣
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⬛⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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I’m Kate, a chronic illness patient and advocate sharing what my life is like with 10+ chronic illnesses. Follow me for more and check out my blog at katethealmostgreat.com⁣⁣.⁣
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ID: Kate takes a selfie in a doctor's office. ⁣
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#PTSDAwareness #ChronicallyIll #TarsalCoalition #RheumatoidArthritis #Osteoporosis
Week 25 of #2026Weekly Happy to be in Maine for Week 25 of #2026Weekly 

Happy to be in Maine for a few weeks! I didn’t get up to a lot, so another week of very few pictures

1️⃣ IVIG 
2️⃣ Lots of beautiful birds have been coming to my mom’s bird feeder!

⬛⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣

I’m Kate, a chronic illness patient and advocate sharing what my life is like with 10+ chronic illnesses. Follow me for more and check out my blog at katethealmostgreat.com⁣⁣.⁣⁣⁣⁣

⬛⁣⁣⁣

IDs: 
1️⃣ Looking at Kate’s lap. Tubes are coming out from under her shirt and there’s a Kindle
2️⃣ Birds arriving at a bird feeder as seen through a window

#ChronicallyIll #InvisibleIllness #ChronicPain #IVIG
What do you have to do every day for your chronic What do you have to do every day for your chronic illnesses? ⁣
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For context, I have rheumatoid arthritis, fibromyalgia, endometriosis, POTS, heart disease, osteoporosis, and more. ⁣
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⬛⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
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I’m Kate, a chronic illness patient and advocate sharing what my life is like with 10+ chronic illnesses. Follow me for more and check out my blog at katethealmostgreat.com⁣⁣.⁣
⁣
⁣⁣⬛⁣⁣
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ID: ⁣
Things I Do Every Day for My Chronic Illnesses⁣
Take pills at least 4 times a day⁣
Don’t eat gluten, dairy, corn, soy, or eggs⁣
Sleep 7+ hours a night⁣
Consume 80-100 grams of protein, 120 mg of calcium, 5-10 grams of sodium⁣
Wear a mask whenever I leave the house⁣
Do pilates 4+ days a week⁣
Work from home⁣
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#ChronicallyIll #InvisibleIllness #RheumatoidArthritis #Fibromyalgia
Filmed this back in April (hence the sweater) but Filmed this back in April (hence the sweater) but it applies to whenever I have appointments! 

Video: Kate talks to the camera while holding a purse. She holds up individual items mentioned in the video before putting them in the bag. There are captions. 

#ChronicallyIll #RheumatoidArthritis #Osteoporosis #ChronicPain
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