Challenges for Mum with arthritis

Anna Mortlock is just like any 37 year old Mum who has to cope with all the stresses of being a Mum to a 6 month old baby, but her journey is slightly different and more difficult than that of most Mums, and that is because she has been living with arthritis since she was 14 years old.

Anna Mortlock and baby Amelia

Photo by: Kerry Howard Photography

Beautiful baby Amelia is Anna's whole world. Anna was always told that having a baby had to be planned with her arthritis in mind. From not being able to be on certain medications, to being careful not to overload her artificial hip joint, to possible fertility issues. It took them 18 months to have Amelia. Anna had to inject herself every day with medication to prevent blood clots and had to have a C-section at the end due to the possibility of dislocating her hip during childbirth, but she still described the pregnancy as "manageable".

"I battle with things like car seats. These are a bit tricky because of my damaged elbows and restricted movements of my joints in my wrists," she says. "I'm finding it hard to find information for Mums who have disabilities and it's even more difficult to find suitable baby equipment such as car seats, carriers and push chairs that are designed for parent me who have impaired physical strength and ability," she says.

Anna says she copes by doing heaps of research, sifting through Google searches for relevant information.

"I'm also lucky to have a friend with RA who was a few months behind me in her pregnancy. We met when we were both cast in "Orange" - a play written for Arthritis New Zealand by Geraldine Brophy, and we swap ideas for living with RA."

Anna's diagnosis

Anna was diagnosed with juvenile idiopathic arthritis at age 14 and later it became rheumatoid arthritis (RA). She had her first hip replacement at 17. She went on to have many surgeries, one being the Sauve-Kapandji procedure on her wrists. This procedure is to immobilise the joint between the two arm bones by fusion of the bones. The procedure does preserve forearm rotation.

"I have also had a fusion done on my right thumb and a rheumatoid cyst removed from a toe. My left hip was again revised when I was 29".

Anna has tried many medicines over the years. She started with "the usual" methotrexate and plaquenil, and now, many years and many medications later, she is on infusions of infliximab every 6 weeks. This medication is primarily to help manage Crohn's disease (which she was diagnosed with 7 years ago), RA and uveitis, which is a form of eye inflammation that affects the middle layer of tissue in the eye wall, which Anna had during her Crohn's disease diagnosis.

"I had a powerport inserted not long after I started infliximab as long term RA made my veins impossible. This has been amazing and made infusions super fast and easy."

All of this has not dampened Anna's zest for life. She finished a dance degree when she was 25 and has danced her way through the diagnoses and treatments. "I was always determined never to let the diseases stop me.

Anna is also heavily involved in theatre - choreography and directing. "Obviously there are physical challenges around this, especially at university, but I was always keen to work out ways of getting through. I'd be able to physically dance and do all the assessments sometimes and other times I'd sit on a chair or get someone to perform my choreography for me. The university was very helpful in this area," she says.

Anna Mortlock receiving infusion through her powerport