Scarlett’s journey started at about 16 months old. We noticed that in the mornings, she would just sit for up to two hours. Did not want to stand or walk – she almost seemed like she had to ‘warm up’ first.

After about a week of no improvement, I took her to the doctor in Victoria where we were visiting my family. Since she had a cold at the time, we were told it was likely viral and causing inflammation in her joints. Once we were back in Prince George a couple of months later, we made an appointment with our GP as there still had been no change. He sent us for x-rays and within hours of getting those done, we received a call to head to paediatrics at UHNBC.

We headed straight there and after blood work and countless questions from nurses, medical students and paediatricians, we got the preliminary diagnosis of Juvenile Arthritis and received a referral to the rheumatology team down at BC Children’s Hospital in Vancouver. Since my family are all down south, we opted to go down to Vancouver for the initial appointment where we met a lot of the wonderful team there.

It was a very overwhelming appointment as I went in ‘blind’ to the appointment – meaning I did not have any information about JA as I refuse to ‘google’ medical information. Shortly after her first appointment, Scarlett was booked in to get cortisone injections in both knees under general anesthetic. That procedure turned her into a whole new person. No more pain the morning, running and jumping the way a ‘typical’ toddler would. She was also started on naproxen and then eventually methotrexate.

We also consider ourselves very lucky to have been able to attend a Cassie + Friends Family Event in 2019 before the pandemic. Meeting other families and attending seminars was such an amazing experience. Since her diagnosis three years ago, Scarlett has been thriving! She recently started a couple of dance classes which are the highlights of her week, she climbs, runs, plays, etc without ever complaining of stiffness or pain. She has slowly become more comfortable with doctor, physio and ophthalmologist appointments.

We are so thankful for the whole team at BCCH and how accessible they are by email or phone. Doing the clinics up in Prince George is very helpful, especially in the winter months when the roads are not ideal for driving to Vancouver. There has not been a time in the past three years that we have felt isolated or alone, and that is completely thanks to the rheumatology team and Cassie + Friends.