When Carolyn Begeman was diagnosed with Axial Spondyloarthritis, it took about six months until she was ready to talk about her condition openly. At the Albuquerque/Santa Fe Support Group, she found others who understood the grief at suffering for a decade misdiagnosed, at not being able to be physically active in the way she had been, and the difficulties of managing work and life with pain and fatigue. The support group members were also there to celebrate as Carolyn found medication that helped — a lot! Carolyn is excited to be able to pay it forward as a support group leader and welcomes anyone in the spondylitis community to join the meetings. She spends her time outside the meetings working as a climate scientist, walking and hiking with her dog and wife, knitting, and cooking (when energy allows!).

About Victoria Ballesteros

Victoria Ballesteros was diagnosed with AS at the age of 65, after a 40-year quest to understand her symptoms and pain. Of course, gaslighting and gender discrimination were constantly encountered, until she found a RA doctor who looked at the whole picture. Now, 10 years later, she had tried and failed every biologic and similar. and has not been on any medication for this condition for over 2 years. Her everyday practice of qigong, meditation and yoga is her true refuge. Finding the SAA support group at the beginning of COVID was a game changer. Her main goal is to be a welcoming and supportive leader for this group, as she has gone through so much pain, grief and yes sorrow to come to her place of acceptance and of course help Caroline as much as she can. She wants to engender more discussion of aging with SA, and especially living with an extreme kyphosis. She knows that this group gives everyone support and encouragement, regardless of where they are on their healing journey

Want to Start a New Support Group?

We’d love to have you join our team of passionate volunteers leading our spondylitis educational support groups! Learn more about how to get started here, and reach out to programs@spondylitis.org