I found this on the Juvenile Arthritis Conference Facebook page:

Dating when you're healthy is a challenge on its own. Throw in Lupus or Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis and it takes the challenge to a whole other level! How do you approach the dating scene? When do you tell the person you're dating your health issues? Please share your tips for dating with arthritis.

Well, personally, for many years I never brought it up, but now I'm more up front about it. Perhaps I just wasn't ready. All through my teens and early 20s I figured why do I need to explain anything just to satisfy some dumb curiosity? Now I've accepted things a little more and it's often one of the first things I tend to mention. Besides, I've found that chicks seem to dig it when you open up a bit more about yourself and tell your story :) If a girl or guy is not interested, starts to yawn and can't respect what you've been through, they sure aren't worth dating. Good to find this stuff out early. LB.