Polymyalgia Rheumatica and Giant Cell Arteritis: a survival guide. 2nd edition. Paperback – May 29, 2016

Read this several years ago. Excellent book on an illness that is often misdiagnosed as most medical professionals are unfamiliar with it. Very helpful as it is easy to read, written in laymen's terms & offers first hand information from someone who has suffered with, and is quite familiar with this ailment. Information on prednisone, the drug of choice to quell inflammation & offers an alternate way to taper doses (also offers alternatives to using steroids).There is a well organized index which is very helpful if you need to quickly find information. Good book to have if you suspect you or a loved one are exhibiting many of the symptoms discussed in this book. Especially useful if your doctor is at an impasse diagnosing the symptoms that you are presenting with that he/she is observing.

Excellent book on GCA,

I found this a very thorough guide for those who know or think they may have one or both of these conditions.

Was a very informative book about what I have a diagnosis for. Learned some new stuff I didn’t know. about. Good reading.

I'm only 50 pages in, but have read and researched for two years trying to find what this woman did. I guess it takes someone with the disease(s) to understand. Kate Gilbert validated so many experiences I've had that were dismissed by various rheumatologists I've seen in the two short years I've had PMR. She used the word "paralyze" instead of "stiffness" which is all you read. Stiffness allow your arms to reach your head to wash your hair. PMR does not. It also affected my hands, like the author's. I was told by a Boston rheumatologist after diagnosis, "Well, I don't know what was going on with your hands, but that's not PMR". I cannot recommend this book with more enthusiasm. Thank you, Kate.

Most of the pages are falling out of the book. So now I have a lot of loose pages and not a book!

This is an excellent book for anybody affected by PMR. After my wife's diagnosis and first treatment with Prednezone I felt that her doctor was not spending enough time with her explaining the disease and treatments so I bought the book and read it. I learned so much and was able to relate so much of that to my wife that she read it also.The single most important strategy that we learned from the book is an alternate schedule for tapering your Prednezone dosages. She tried it, it works and took some of the problems out of tapering dosages. She told her doctor about the strategy and he "ho hummed" it but I'll bet he is suggesting it to other patients.The book was money and time well spent

Some excellent coping suggestions