CHRISTINE Lowe had a job she loved with Bolton Council when she was forced to leave it four years ago because of rheumatoid arthritis.

She is one of more than 400,000 people in the UK who suffer from this autoimmune condition. For rheumatoid arthritis, unlike osteoarthritis which can be caused by wear and tear, comes from your body’s immune system picking the wrong target.

Because the body’s immune system has become too active, it mistakenly attacks your body instead of defending it against infection. It attacks the lining of the joints (the synovial lining) which causes inflammation; this leads to symptoms like pain and stiffness.

In Christine’s case, it all started with a large and painful lump on her elbow in 2000. At the time, she was a relatively healthy woman of 40 with two children.

By 2010, her day was dominated by biological drugs, her hands and feet were very deformed by the disease and the impact of fatigue was “immense and debilitating.”

Her job as Operational Facilities Manager for the Council, which meant she dealt with all aspects of buildings, was difficult. “I struggled to drive to work and some days I couldn’t take the handbrake off the car,” she recalled.

“Walking was so difficult and painful. I couldn’t even use the keyboard to write and I had to ask clients to come to our offices as I couldn’t get to them. I found it hard to get to the kitchen to make a brew some days. Staff had to bring me a drink to my desk.”

She got up at 7am to take the drugs that allowed her to move, but then had to wait for them to start working and consequently did not get into work until 10am. “I struggled to re-educate my colleagues and managers on the impact of rheumatoid arthritis,” she added. “Some of them thought I just couldn’t be bothered getting up in the morning.”

Hospital appointments and lengthy flare-ups added to her problems. In 2014, she took early retirement through ill-health. “I was devastated because I adored my job,” explained Christine, “but it became just too much.”

Although adjusting to a life without work was far from easy, today Christine manages her time differently. She has a mobility scooter and her husband Andrew, who was a Compliance Manager for Bolton Council and is also now retired, has to drive her if she wants to go any distance.

She works voluntarily for the National Rheumatoid Arthritis Association (NRAS). She is a Manchester ambassador, talking to healthcare professionals from the patient’s perspective, giving feedback on service reviews, helping at fundraising events, supporting research and talking to drug reps about what it’s truly like to live with the disease. Christine also fights for better services and resources.

She has had to change many aspects of her life and now sleeps downstairs as stairs pose a problem. This is extended to hotels where she has to plan stays well in advance, checking there are lifts, adapted toilets and walk-in showers.

She finds facilities for the disabled vary wildly: from virtually none to places like Wimbledon tennis club which were “excellent.”

People’s attitudes also vary, from the extremely helpful to the angry man at the Lytham Festival who “tried to shove me and shouted ‘Get out of the way, Benidorm!’ Fortunately, most people are far kinder and more helpful and aware.”

* For more information go to https://www.nras.org.uk The Bolton NRAS Group offers information and support and meets on the first Tuesday of every month at the Jason Kenny Centre from 2pm to 3.45pm with all welcome.