I’m 18, I’ve had RA symptoms most of my life, but was only diagnosed at 15 or 16 (can’t recall exactly which it was at the moment), and I take an NSAID for pain as well as a weekly vitamin d supplement bcus I have a deficiency in that which contributes to the joint pain. Recently though I feel like my symptoms have been getting worse and I’ve been flaring more, I think possibly because of burnout being at the end of high school or honestly maybe it’s just progressing but I don’t wanna think abt that lol. But today I’m having possibly my worst flare of the year (so far, it’s only May lmao), and I just had to take an AP test while trying to tamp down a migraine and nausea and ignore my bone pains. It’s so bad that I actually had to use the handicap stall on our bathroom break (which isn’t common for me), and now I’m thinking abt how I’m gonna get through this week and then how I’m gonna get through college when I’m literally not allowed to rest. I don’t have any accommodations to let me use elevators or have extra passing period time at school (the only time I ever got any accommodation was freshman year when they said I could walk instead of run in gym and not have to do stair climbs which is the only reason I didnt fail cause for some reason they graded off of speed and endurance rather than effort), so I have to just tough it out. And then I go home and my mom makes me work out some days, others I actually do get to lay down until the next morning. But my parents are unsympathetic and refuse to acknowledge that my disability is actually disabling and think I’m just being dramatic so I know they’re gonna make me do stuff over the weekend when I should be resting to let this flare pass, and if I try to say no they’ll punish me. Ik they love me but they’re like in denial or something anyways that’s not the point.
Sorry for the kind of vent-y nature of this post, but I’d like to ask if anyone has any advice for me to get through school? Both for the last weeks of high school (which is 8am-4:20pm five days a week and my parents wouldn’t dream of letting me skip for my health) and for college once summer ends. And also for holding down a job over summer cause I don’t have much work experience so all the things I would be able to get require standing for long periods of time and lifting stuff. Pls help.