Galway Advertiser 2007/2007_09_06/GA_0609_E1_020.pdf 

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Galway Advertiser

September 6 2007

NEWS

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FASHION

BEAUTY

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H E A LT H

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LIFE

MARY
When 33-year-old Philip Gleeson learned last year he had sudden onset acute inflammatory arthritis he was in shock. A garda based in Gort, he led an active lifestyle. He played squash and hurled with Ardrahan and had two young children. He describes the period that followed his diagnosis as a type of "bereavement". "I was grieving for what I perceived to have lost, the life I had. I was very active before that. It seemed very unfair at the time. You always think `Why me?' If the condition had come on over several years I would have had a chance to become accustomed to it but it came on so quickly." Philip, who is originally from Dublin but moved to Galway city when he was 20, first began to suffer from inflammation in his joints in May 2006. Within two weeks his condition deteriorated to such an extent that he was unable to get out of bed. "I had pain in my knees, elbows and hands. I didn't know what it was. I became so inflamed and sore I could not get out of bed. I couldn't move. I couldn't button my shirt or get dressed." He was diagnosed with sudden onset acute inflammatory arthritis. It was a difficult time for both he and his wife, Maeve, he says. Philip was worried he would not be able to work again. He loved his job and had a mortgage and young family to support. "I decided I had to get things sorted and must keep going. I went to the Garda Headquarters in Dublin to be assessed. I absolutely thought I was going to get the door." Thankfully, he says the news was good on both the work and health front.

O'CONNOR
His superiors and colleagues were a great support to him and he says he is indebted to them. "My former superintendent Con Cadogen and my new superintendent James O'Connor were very supportive. The lads in my unit can't do enough for me, too. After three to four months I got a phone call asking me was there any way I could come back to work. The superintendent said he had a new computer job in mind for me. I came back working days. I was getting better and better." Today Philip works as a public officer at Gort Garda Station. His arthritis is well controlled. "Mostly during the day I'm fine. Sometimes I have problems at night so I take extra medication if I need to." He attended an arthritis self management course run by Arthritis Ireland and found it very beneficial. "It was a six week course which was held in Galway and it opened my eyes. I was in a roomful of people who were in the same boat as myself, lots were worse than me. It was a practical course which dealt with things like keeping a pain diary, drawing up an action plan to get healthy and fit and dealing with your medical practitioner." After attending the course Philip was invited to a meeting in April to relaunch the Galway Branch of Arthritis Ireland. He was voted chairperson on the night. be taken to stop the damage untreated arthritis can do to joints. Geraldine Mannion, a rheumatologist nurse specialist at Merlin Park Hospital, will talk about the everyday difficulties of living with arthritis, how sufferers can help themselves become more mobile and get more out of life. Professor Frank Barry, the director of the regenerative medicine institute at NUI Galway, will reveal the exciting work taking place at the university in stem cell research and its future benefits to people with arthritis. Dr Adrian Gibbs, a consultant rheumatologist at the Galway Clinic, will outline how osteoporosis is diagnosed and treated. Philip Gleeson, the chairperson of the Galway Branch of Arthritis Ireland, says there is a "huge need" for the services it provides to arthritis sufferers, their families and carers in Galway. The local organisation is appealing for funding to finance its activities. "We are looking to the business community of Galway to help finance our activities in any way that they can. Even a small contribution financially can go a long way. We work on keeping our costs down to a large extent. However as we run large free information days and are about to start a drop in centre and peer support groups in Galway city we do need help." Arthritis affects one in six people. One in every four families are affected in some way. "I am personally aware how much this affliction can damage people and their families. I can tell you that I never thought that I would be so completely affected by a disease. After several months of excellent medical care and with the help of Arthritis Ireland self management courses I was able to return to work as a member of An Garda Siochana, albeit in a desk bound capacity, a huge change in my professional career." * For further information about the arthritis information day contact Philip Gleeson at (086) 8274847 or Tina Waldron at (087) 9687268.

Coping with arthritis
Sick leave
He went on sick leave from work and began an aggressive treatment regime. "The medication took effect fairly quickly. In a month I was recovering but I was off work for three to four months." While he had heard about arthritis before he did not realise the condition could affect younger people. "I knew what arthritis was from my granny and older people. But I didn't think it happened to people my age."

Information day
The Galway Branch of Arthritis Ireland will hold a public information day on arthritis on Sunday at the Galway Bay Hotel at 2.30pm. A panel of speakers will discuss current treatments, how arthritis sufferers can help themselves, how stress impacts on pain, mood disorders and cognition and research in gene therapy and stem cells. Dr Robert Coughlan, a consultant rhematologist at Merlin Park Hospital, will outline how doctors recognise arthritis, how the disease progresses, the current treatments and when more aggressive action should

Philip Gleeson was diagnosed with sudden onset acute inflammatory arthritis last year.