Tatum O’Neal has recently revealed her scars and spoken about her rheumatoid arthritis on Instagram.
On Wednesday, she posted a photo of her scarred and bruised back to show the consequences of living with the painful rheumatic condition.
The 56-year-old wrote, “Living with rheumatoid arthritis. A fall scratch scar on my right hip. And the back surgery scar from eight years ago. My last back surgery scar is on the front from February.”
The Paper Moon star continued, “And all those red marks are from heating pads ~I probably should turn those down a little bit and, believe it or not this is me actually getting better.”
She added, “Cheers to everyone and rheumatoid arthritis can go f**k itself #rheumatoidarthritiswarrior.”
O’Neal posted a black-and-white photo of herself with her dog on Instagram to inform her fans that she has been feeling a bit better and was on the mend.
The Oscar winner writes, “Hi, I’ve been in some rheumatoid arthritis bull crap but finally, I’m feeling a little bit better,” she shared with her followers. “I hate texting because my hands suck Right now.. so If I don’t text you back I promise it’s nothing personal.”
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) happens when your body’s defenses – your immune system – targets your joint linings, according to WebMD. RA affects joints on both sides of the body, such as both hands, both wrists, or both knees.
In December, O’Neal said she had been undergoing treatment for rheumatoid arthritis in an Instagram post. She wrote, “Second dose of #actemra hoping to get RA back to the way it’s been Not like how it is which is lame !!” She posted a picture of her prescription medication’s packaging.
Last year, she revealed that she had underwent a spinal surgery called anterior lumbar interbody fusion (ALIF). According to the USC Spine Center website, “ALIF is commonly performed for a variety of painful spinal conditions, such as spondylolisthesis and degenerative disc disease, among others.”
