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in Health &middot July 25, 2016

Living with Arthritis: My Goals for a Positive and Happy Life

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in Health &middot July 25, 2016

Living with Arthritis: My Goals for a Positive and Happy Life

As I talked about last week, just because my arthritis has brought a lot of negative things to my life doesn't meant that it hasn't brought some positive changes, too. But ... Read the Post...

in Lifestyle &middot July 22, 2016

2016 So Far

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in Lifestyle &middot July 22, 2016

2016 So Far

You asked, so I'm delivering - the most common post request in the 2016 survey was for more of my personal life, so today I'm going to talk a bit more about my life, my year ... 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".
in Health &middot July 21, 2016

How My Raging Autoimmune Disease Positively Changed My Life

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in Health &middot July 21, 2016

How My Raging Autoimmune Disease Positively Changed My Life

As you probably know, I have rheumatoid arthritis. When I was diagnosed, I had 58 affected joints, and I've never gone below 52. What you may not know is that rheumatoid ... Read the Post...

What To Ask in a Reader Survey
in Writing & Blogging &middot July 18, 2016

What To Ask in a Reader Survey

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in Writing & Blogging &middot July 18, 2016

What To Ask in a Reader Survey

What To Ask in a Reader Survey

A key part of writing for an audience is understanding what that audience wants to read about. I blog for me and I write about what I want to write about, but it doesn't ... Read the Post...

in Writing & Blogging &middot July 13, 2016

Don’t Overuse Exclamation Points

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in Writing & Blogging &middot July 13, 2016

Don’t Overuse Exclamation Points

It's time talk about one of my biggest grammatical pet peeves - when people overuse exclamation points. As a writer and a reader - of both books and online sources like blogs ... Read the Post...

My Everyday Makeup Routine
in Lifestyle &middot July 11, 2016

My Everyday Makeup Routine

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in Lifestyle &middot July 11, 2016

My Everyday Makeup Routine

My Everyday Makeup Routine

If you follow my Snapchat at all (katebmitchell if you haven't already followed!), you know due to my copious selfies describing my makeup that I like makeup an awful ... Read the Post...

in Writing & Blogging &middot July 5, 2016

June Blog Traffic Report

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in Writing & Blogging &middot July 5, 2016

June Blog Traffic Report

The good news is that I finally finished my first year of grad school! The bad news is that I won't really be caught up on blogging things until next week due to working, ... Read the Post...

in Health &middot June 29, 2016

10 Tips To Manage Your Chronic Pain This Summer

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in Health &middot June 29, 2016

10 Tips To Manage Your Chronic Pain This Summer

We are fully into summer, the time of vacations, sun, and warmth. But regardless of your summer plans - including long weekends and weeks off - your chronic pain won't take a ... Read the Post...

in Writing & Blogging &middot June 27, 2016

2016 Reader Survey + Giveaway

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in Writing & Blogging &middot June 27, 2016

2016 Reader Survey + Giveaway

  Hello! If you don't follow me on social media, you may have missed why I disappeared. As I've mentioned before, the last arthritis treatment I tried did not work, ... Read the Post...

in Lifestyle &middot June 20, 2016

Birthday Beauty Buys and Reviews

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in Lifestyle &middot June 20, 2016

Birthday Beauty Buys and Reviews

As you may or may not know if you follow me on Twitter, after my birthday, I went on a Sephora shopping spree. This means that you get a haul post! So here's what I got and ... Read the Post...

in Writing & Blogging &middot June 16, 2016

My Favorite Authors And How They’ve Inspired My Writing

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in Writing & Blogging &middot June 16, 2016

My Favorite Authors And How They’ve Inspired My Writing

A key part of every writer's life is reading. It's how we got into writing and it's how we become better writers. So today I'm talking about my favorite writers, why I love ... Read the Post...

in Health &middot June 9, 2016

11 Ways To Feel Better on a Bad Day

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in Health &middot June 9, 2016

11 Ways To Feel Better on a Bad Day

Life isn't all sunshines and rainbows. Whether you have health issues or just a string of bad days, sometimes you just need to feel better in some way right this very moment. ... Read the Post...

Instagram Update
in Lifestyle &middot June 6, 2016

Life Update

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in Lifestyle &middot June 6, 2016

Life Update

Instagram Update

Given that I try to write content that helps people in some way, I haven't really written a life update in a while. And since a picture says a thousand words, I'm providing ... Read the Post...

in Health &middot June 3, 2016

What To Do if a Doctor Doesn’t Believe You

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in Health &middot June 3, 2016

What To Do if a Doctor Doesn’t Believe You

There is so much that goes into living with a chronic health issues, and a lot of it you don't realize unless you live with it. Easily the worst part is when you're trying to ... Read the Post...

May 2016 Blog Traffic Report
in Writing & Blogging &middot June 1, 2016

May Blog Traffic Report

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in Writing & Blogging &middot June 1, 2016

May Blog Traffic Report

May 2016 Blog Traffic Report

May was ... interesting. Let's just say that. It involved recovering from ER trips, the end of the semester, my sister's graduation and the ensuing family events, and, of ... Read the Post...

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Kate the (Almost) Great® is a chronic illness lifestyle blog. It is a resource for chronic illness patients and their loved ones.

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Kate the (Almost) Great

Chronic health lifestyle blog

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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. ⁣
⁣
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. ⁣
⁣
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. ⁣
⁣
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!⁣
⁣
⬛⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
⁣
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⁣⁣.⁣
⁣
⁣⁣⬛⁣⁣⁣
⁣
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?⁣
⁣
⬛⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
⁣
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".⁣
⁣
#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.⁣
⁣
⬛⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
⁣
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. ⁣
⁣
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. ⁣
⁣
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. ⁣
⁣
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. ⁣
⁣
PTSD is a bitch.⁣
⁣
(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.)⁣
⁣
⬛⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
⁣
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. ⁣
⁣
#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? ⁣
⁣
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⁣⁣.⁣
⁣
⁣⁣⬛⁣⁣
⁣
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⁣
⁣
#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
There are a lot of medical advancements that I'm g There are a lot of medical advancements that I'm grateful for, but one of them is the ability to do IVIG at home. ⁣
⁣
I'm on IVIG - or, in my case, subcutaneous immunoglobulin replacement therapy - because I have to kill the better part of my immune system. There are, in fact, some parts of my immune system that don't attack me, which is why we add them back in. This helps reduce my chance of serious infection and also made my rheumatologist feel comfortable enough to increase my Rituxan dose. ⁣
⁣
This is a weekly treatment that I do, but it's so much better that I can do it at home than going into the hospital. It takes around 2.5 hours from taking my pre-meds to tossing my needles into a Sharps container. While it's another thing that I have to do, because I do it at home, I don't have to risk exposure to infections at the hospital or deal with Boston traffic, which would add another hour to the process. ⁣
⁣
I can finish my treatment and then go about my day, which I'm very grateful for.⁣
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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: A Kindle on Kate's legs. There are tubes for an infusion coming out of her shirt.⁣
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#IVIG #ChronicallyIll #RheumatoidArthritis #Autoimmune #AutoimmuneDisease
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