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Chronic illness support that feels like family.

Encouragement, resources, and a Discord community that provides real-life support as you navigate life with Rheumatoid Arthritis.

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Community
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Advice
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Education

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Join the Flare Family Discord community!

Connect with people in your city who know what it's like to live with chronic illness. Support each other however you can, whenever you can.

submit your application →

Trying to explain what you're going through can be a headache.

These free resources are available to print and share so the people in your life can better understand and support you.

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A mockup of two Flare Family resource print outs. One print is titled "how a rheumatoid arthritis flare works" and the other is titled "what does RA pain feel like"
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Meet the Founder

Ellen McDowell

ellenwitharthritis@gmail.com
Hey, my name is Ellen and I'm so glad you found Flare Family. Like many of you, the trajectory of my life was forever changed when I developed Rheumatoid Arthritis during my freshman year of college. Unable to attend classes and scared for my future, I dropped out and had to find a new path.

Over the last decade, I've learned how to advocate for myself and build a beautiful life while navigating the many challenges chronic illness brings.

Today, I'm passionate about educating, empowering, and encouraging others living with chronic illnesses. I currently run the TikTok account @ellenwitharthritis, a community of over 12,000+ individuals. My aim is to simplify complex topics and describe the chronic illness experience in a way that deeply resonates with others.

Flare Family was a dream for a long time and I'm grateful that it's now a reality. Thanks for being here.

Contact

Have questions about Flare Family? Need advice about living with Rheumatoid Arthritis? I'm here to connect with you and answer your questions!

Are you a writer? Do you have a story to tell or advice to give? I'm always looking for guest authors. If you're interested in writing a blog post for Flare Family, contact me via email or this form.

ellenwitharthritis@gmail.com

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Your generosity fuels Flare Family.

Flare Family is free to use and always will be. Your generosity fuels Flare Family and allows me to devote time, energy, and resources to this mission. Transparency reports are published at the end of each quarter here so you can see where your money goes. Thank you for being here and thank you for being an advocate for chronically ill folks.
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