My Journey with Running and PsA

After I had to give up running due to psoriatic arthritis (PsA), I worried that I might lose the one thing that consistently helped me cope with challenges.

For as long as I can remember, running has been a form of therapy for me. When my feet hit the pavement (or the tread), my mind goes quiet, I can put my worries aside and just exist with my breath and whatever music I have playing in the background.

In 2019, when I received my PsA diagnosis, I completely lost my ability to run. I could barely walk for the first 4 hours of my day, and it rocked my world.

I lost my favorite and most effective form of therapy at a time when I felt like I needed it most.

Here I was, suddenly diagnosed with a chronic condition I would have to live with and adjust to having for the rest of my life.

I waded through the grief of having to let go of what I thought my life would look like, all the while being unable to do the one thing that has always been there to help me cope with life’s most challenging moments.

When I received my diagnosis, I didn’t know if I would ever be able to run again. I felt trapped inside this body I had been living in for 26 years, but suddenly didn’t even recognize.

I used to run marathons. I was training to run a 5-minute 30-second mile, so who is this girl who can barely get out of bed because of pain?

Who is this girl who is suddenly so stiff she can’t bend her knees? Who is this girl who is so fatigued she can barely function? How am I supposed to adjust to this?

Well, when your only choice is to adjust that’s what you do — and that’s what I did. I took up biking. I found meditation and yoga. I got myself a good therapist.

While I couldn’t run, I focused on other things. I even got to a point where I was able to accept I might never get to enjoy running again.

But then, about 3 years after receiving my PsA diagnosis, running started to become possible for me again. I finally found a medication that worked well for my joints, and it gave me parts of my life back — like running — that I thought I’d never see again.

Today, I can run up to 3 miles comfortably without stopping and without pain. I can’t run like I used to. My pace is a lot slower. I probably won’t ever run a marathon again.

I know I won’t ever be able to reach that old goal I had of running a mile in 5 minutes and 30 seconds … but honestly? I’m just so happy to be able to do this thing I’ve always loved so much again, I don’t care that it’s not how I used to be able to do it.

While I definitely credit finding the right medication for helping me get back to running again, I also fully believe that the right running shoes are just as important.

In the same way that all of us are different, and different medications work differently for each of us, the same goes for shoes. What may work best for me may not work at all for you and vice versa.

But with that being said I want to share my absolute favorite running shoe with you. I believe this specific shoe has been a HUGE reason why I’m able to run again and it is the: Hoka Arahi.

I currently own the Hoka Arahi 7 and the support from this shoe has been a game changer for me as a runner who lives with inflammatory arthritis. I truly don’t think I’d be able to run without my Hokas, and I’m forever grateful that this brand of shoe exists!

Anyway, I hope that if you also had to give up something you really loved because of PsA or any other kind of inflammatory arthritis/chronic condition, you might be able to get back to it someday or find something else you can learn to love just as much.

I know it’s hard. I’m rooting for you!