Arthritis diary Honesty and openness Honest communication is the best way forward, says Julian Worricker In the interests of openness, I feel I should start this diary with a clarification. I usually write it several weeks before you read it. I point this out because we are living through unprecedented times, and by the time Inspire arrives on your doormat, I have no idea where well all be as far as coronavirus is concerned. All I can say is that I hope youre well, and that youll continue to be so. The arrival in our lives of something over which we have no control has been deeply unsettling. For some, it will revive memories of that moment when our joints began to inexplicably develop pain and immobility. There was no outward sign of a problem, but we knew something was wrong; it was something that might vary in terms of pain level, but it wouldnt go away completely. For many of us, it wasnt something with which we bothered the doctor at least not straight away. In my case, I was in my late 30s; it seemed unimaginable that something such as arthritis could be affecting me; that was just something old people had, wasnt it? When I did consult the doctor, I had to wait for various test results before an accurate diagnosis could be made. Then came the explanation psoriatic arthritis. I was one of the 20 per cent of people with psoriasis who, at that time, had developed the arthritis linked to it. Nothing causes more frustration than telling half-truths, leaving people guessing Lucky one Twenty years on, I regard myself as one of the lucky ones. Im not just talking about the treatment Ive had, although Im fortunate now to be on drugs that have left my condition officially in remission. Im talking more about the way Ive been spoken to, communicated with, and kept informed about everything thats happened. I work in the communications business, and I know nothing causes more frustration than telling people half-truths, shying away from being up front, leaving people guessing what you really meant. Ive never encountered that during my dealings with my consultant or my nurse, and that openness and honesty makes for a much healthier relationship. It has meant, for example, that when I had to be put on a course of steroids to combat carpal tunnel syndrome, I felt able to make the following enquiry: Dont steroids make some things get smaller and other things get bigger if you take them for any length of time? Consultant smiles. Not in these quantities. Youll be fine. And they worked. Julian Worricker So, returning to where I began; this has been a period is a BBC TV and when weve relied upon our NHS more than ever. And amid radio presenter and all the upset, the worry, the vital medical treatment thats journalist, and has gone on, how much have we appreciated being spoken to like psoriatic arthritis. grown-ups?