A natural-born and gifted writer, Beverly was nearly forced to give up her beloved journalism career when the pain in her hands and wrists became unbearable. A diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) significantly altered her life as she knew it. She was a college student with big dreams, but as a reporter, her hands were her tools. She had stories to tell, so she couldn’t let RA—or as Beverly calls it, “Arthur”—take control.
She had to bear the pain and grit her teeth through joint replacement after joint replacement. Enduring one ineffective treatment after another, she finally found one that gave her a new sense of hope. While she has hung up her figurative journalism gloves, Beverly still contributes to local community outreach projects and maintains her movie fix sitting back in the darkness, popcorn in hand. Above all, becoming an Ambassador and sharing her RA journey has been cathartic and made her appreciate the highs and lows of living with her disease, knowing that she is not alone.
In sharing her journey, Beverly wishes to better the lives of those struggling. Her narrative of keeping “Arthur” at bay makes her journey a whole lot more of a personal battle, and she shares the same hope that she found in becoming a Patient Ambassador in the only way she has ever known: storytelling.