Big Phil Beats Arthritis (and signs new sponsorship deal with Amgen / Pfizer)

conno16

World number two (soon to be #1) Big Phil Mickelson has revealed that he is suffering from psoriatic arthritis.


It is an inflammatory joint disease which can cause stiffness, pain and lack of movement for those of you who are unfamiliar with the chronic condition.


Big Phil was on anti-inflammatories during the Scottish Open and The Open last month - but for the last two weeks has been injecting himself daily with a drug that he has been told to take for the next year.

The problem started just before the US Open in June according to Big Phil: 'I woke up and had intense pain in some joints and tendons, so much so that I couldn't walk. It progressively got worse, so finally I got it checked out.'


One of the by-products of the disease is that Mickelson has become a vegetarian. He is part of a group which owns the rights for a burger chain in California and on that joked: 'We're working on a veggie burger!'


Since starting his injections Mickelson said he had been able to 'swing and practise full bore'. He added: 'It was a little bit concerning, but I've had some great doctors and things have been looking great and long-term there shouldn't be any issues so I will be world number one before long. It's very treatable and the medicine I've been taking has been very helpful. I feel 90%. Heading into the PGA I'm probably not as sharp as I would like to be. I didn't play well at the British obviously, I didn't play well last weekend, but I believe that the game's coming around.''


As well as not being able to walk when the disease struck, Mickelson also had a sprained left index finger and sprained right wrist.
'Then it started getting worse into other joints, the hips and ankle and elbows and shoulders. When my jaw got stiff, that's when I got concerned. The treatment is a thing called Enbrel. I give myself a shot a day, most people can only handle a weekly shot, and it lowers my immune system and stops it from attacking the joints.


'I've had some good immediate response and that's why I feel comfortable talking about it, knowing that long-term and short-term things are fine.
'This has put it in remission. It's not that it's cured, but it may never come back, or if it does I'll start the treatment again and should be able to live a normal life without having any adverse effects.'

durkadurka

What a load of bollox

BigAl>>

durkadurka wrote: »

What a load of bollox

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jHU4EYdGQL8l80CbPa44MfG1cHSA

ANXIOUS

conno16 wrote: »

World number two (soon to be #1) Big Phil Mickelson has revealed that he is suffering from psoriatic arthritis.


It is an inflammatory joint disease which can cause stiffness, pain and lack of movement for those of you who are unfamiliar with the chronic condition.


Big Phil was on anti-inflammatories during the Scottish Open and The Open last month - but for the last two weeks has been injecting himself daily with a drug that he has been told to take for the next year.

The problem started just before the US Open in June according to Big Phil: 'I woke up and had intense pain in some joints and tendons, so much so that I couldn't walk. It progressively got worse, so finally I got it checked out.'


One of the by-products of the disease is that Mickelson has become a vegetarian. He is part of a group which owns the rights for a burger chain in California and on that joked: 'We're working on a veggie burger!'


Since starting his injections Mickelson said he had been able to 'swing and practise full bore'. He added: 'It was a little bit concerning, but I've had some great doctors and things have been looking great and long-term there shouldn't be any issues so I will be world number one before long. It's very treatable and the medicine I've been taking has been very helpful. I feel 90%. Heading into the PGA I'm probably not as sharp as I would like to be. I didn't play well at the British obviously, I didn't play well last weekend, but I believe that the game's coming around.''


As well as not being able to walk when the disease struck, Mickelson also had a sprained left index finger and sprained right wrist.
'Then it started getting worse into other joints, the hips and ankle and elbows and shoulders. When my jaw got stiff, that's when I got concerned. The treatment is a thing called Enbrel. I give myself a shot a day, most people can only handle a weekly shot, and it lowers my immune system and stops it from attacking the joints.


'I've had some good immediate response and that's why I feel comfortable talking about it, knowing that long-term and short-term things are fine.
'This has put it in remission. It's not that it's cured, but it may never come back, or if it does I'll start the treatment again and should be able to live a normal life without having any adverse effects.'

Fair play conno always keeping us up to date.

fullstop

durkadurka wrote: »

What a load of bollox

WTF are you on about?

conno16

psoriatic arthritis can change ones life overnight - it is widely accepted within the medical community as one of the most fearsome chronic diseases out there

personally i think it sounds like big phil just had a bad bout of gout

thank heavens for enbrel

L.O.F.T

conno16 wrote: »

When my jaw got stiff, that's when I got concerned.

Your editorial flamboyance knows no bounds conno.

PhilipMarlowe

conno16 wrote: »

He added: "...there shouldn't be any issues so I will be world number one before long.''

That sure does sound like a direct quote from Phil all right, god he's an arrogant man

conno16

the bloke riddled with arthritis -v- the sex maniac

hollywood beckons
this could catapult golf back into the bigtime
Tincup 2

PhilipMarlowe

The big stiff guy versus the erm..... /gets coat

soundsham

surely Tiger would be the better face for pfizers.......:pac:-