Thumbs up, thumbs down. Courtesy Stock ExchangeArticle contentMy thumbs have been taking on a new but undesired look. There are protrusions that appear to want to force their way through my skin.THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY.Subscribe now to access this story and more:Unlimited access to the website and appExclusive access to premium content, newsletters and podcastsFull access to the e-Edition app, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment onEnjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalistsSupport local journalists and the next generation of journalistsSUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES.Subscribe or sign in to your account to continue your reading experience.Unlimited access to the website and appExclusive access to premium content, newsletters and podcastsFull access to the e-Edition app, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment onEnjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalistsSupport local journalists and the next generation of journalistsRegister to unlock more articles.Create an account or sign in to continue your reading experience.Access additional stories every monthShare your thoughts and join the conversation in our commenting communityGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountorArticle contentThey’ve become more pronounced in the last year. There is accompanying pain from these protrusions.Article contentArticle contentI also know this is part of the process. My body is aging.Article contentThe arthritis I am feeling is not something I was prepared for. Though I should have been ready, I didn’t think it would happen to me.Article contentArticle contentThe arthritis snuck up on me.Article contentLike some masked intruder that struck me when I thought I was still in the full flower of youth.Article contentI wondered how this could possibly happen to me. I had thought I did everything I should with this human body that I have.Article contentExercise. Eat fruit and vegetables. Kept my weight down.Article contentSleep has always been trouble, but does a lack of sleep lead to protruding calcified bone tissue?Article contentI wonder how the movie critics Siskel and Ebert’s thumbs were doing at the end of their lives. I can never think of these two without the image of thumbs going up or down.Article contentAnd I started thinking what have I used my thumbs for in my life?Article contentI’ve hiked using them. Don’t know why the index finger couldn’t be used for hiking, but thumbs, like a bully, took over in this activity.Article contentNot sure if the index finger would get the same desired result if looking for a drive.Article contentWe do a lot of gripping with the thumbs with the rest of the hand’s digits in support. Gripping a baseball bat, or a tennis racket, a hammer, lawn mowers, brooms and rakes, etc.Article contentArticle contentThey get a lot of use.Article contentPerhaps the constant moving of the thumb’s joints have finally triggered something in the cartilage that started a rebellion.Article contentThey were overworked and now they want me to find another way to get a grip on things.Article contentMy doctor says it could be the result of using a keyboard. That space bar gets pushed a lot to separate words in this process called writing.Article contentNot being overly thrilled over this new found pain, I bought an electric can opener because using a manual one requires mostly painful thumb use.Article contentI’ve also had to start driving with my thumbs gathered together with my fingers at the top of the steering wheel.Article contentNext I may have to use a different appendage to use the remote control. Not sure which one to use. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.Article contentPhysical degradation requires change.Article contentI was forced into using my left hand for a few months to use a computer mouse at work a few years ago because of shoulder pain.Article contentIt took some getting used to, but we do adapt. I was born in the early part of the 1960s so what I’m experiencing is probably an inevitability of the wear and tear of 60 plus years.Article contentBut I have this nagging regret in the back of my head that wonders if there was something I could have done differently, even as a mull over the thought that it was inevitable.Article contentThere are other parts of me that are starting to develop issues that are also slowing me down.Article contentIn the next episode of this ongoing life, I will discuss my knees.Article contentBill Fiander,Article contentSydneyArticle content
LETTER: An unenthusiastic thumbs up to arthritis
