Written by: Dr. Frannie Koe, MD
Edited by: Breanne Brazeale
I began farming in my 40s after I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. I received my diagnosis at 45 and bought my farm at 46. Originally, I did not intend to buy 76 acres, but I walked on this property and it was incredibly beautiful. My land overlooks the valley between Sand Mountain and Lookout Mountain. Since I knew I was going to do rural medicine, I had been looking for land and I fell in love. I am still in love!
Many people who drive up my driveway exclaim at the beauty. I know there are many other beautiful places in the world. But I feel fortunate to live here and see the dew on the fields almost every day when I wake up. We live on a piece of property that is close to neighbors for a country farm, but it is also very private because of the way our property is laid out. Every morning when we awake, we don’t see anyone; we see only trees, picturesque fields, and grazing animals.
Since I was young, my goal has been to have a few acres so that I could garden and raise animals. That dream grew and grew as I got older. I did not know I would have physical issues that would complicate my dream of gardening, homesteading and taking care of my property. I always loved to cut grass, do yard work, hang out clothes and be outside. I have always loved riding my bike around town and walking and talking with my daughters. Living in the country and working the land held many unexpected challenges for me. I also underestimated how much time it would take to be a family doctor.
But I am here and don’t regret a minute of my journey! The first five years of having RA were pretty reasonable. I had occasional extremely painful flares every few weeks to months. Generally, I could do anything I wanted. I was stiff in the mornings, but felt better as the day went on. Before I went to work at DCH in Tuscaloosa, I rode my bike for 12 miles each morning. I always took the stairs instead of the elevator because I get motion sick easily and it helped me stay in shape. Eventually, I could run up the stairs two at a time to get my exercise. Our resident’s lounge was on the 5th floor and ortho was on the 7th floor. I made many trips to the fifth floor each day, and when I was on ortho, I went all the way up to the 7th floor. For a 47-year-old at the end of residency, I was in pretty decent shape. I even weighed a few pounds less than when I graduated from high school. Health has always been a priority despite, or perhaps because of my Rheumatoid Arthritis diagnosis. Starting the first year I owned this property, I began collecting organic matter for the garden as I was a follower of Ruth Stout who mulched her New England gardens thickly with great success. I have had a garden every year since I arrived on my farm, but about two years ago we cut way back to just a few items when life was too busy and COVID hit. Not sure why when COVID hit, but I think we just needed a brief break. I also wanted to give the ground a rest.
We are not skilled gardeners! I have been learning on the weekends most of my gardening career except when I was a stay-at-home mom. Then I had more time to spend gardening, but I was even more in the learning phase! My garden has always become overgrown with weeds, been bug infested and not always as healthy as I would have liked. We often got some really great food, though. Most years, we grew enough to contribute substantially to our diet and could give some away. My garden is not neat, ever! It may look nice and tidy on the day we plant it and after weed-eating occasionally, but most of the time it has weeds. As one can imagine, I don’t always have time to spend keeping things immaculate.
We have tried gardening in several locations all across our property, both to make work easier and to grow food near the front door while attempting to follow a permaculture plan. Some spots have been more productive, but mostly because we have added many amendments to the soil, including mulch, compost, animal manure, and kitchen scraps.
Why write about farming with RA at my age? At this time, I am 61 years old. I want to encourage people to farm, become self-sufficient, support vibrant health, and exercise and want to prove that you can do it no matter your age or if you have some physical issues. Also, I want to promote physical movement of any kind. I want to promote pain control when one is busy doing something productive, such as gardening or being outside in the sun.
There are many myths about what you can or cannot do because of health issues. Not everyone can farm and garden. I get that. But we can often do more than we realize and it can help us feel healthier and be healthier. Being outside in my garden has often lifted my spirits when they were particularly low because I was in pain and could not move well.
Having support from one’s spouse is often very helpful, but I have written an article about how I love to farm and garden and my partner does not share my passion. Much of the farm-related responsibility falls on me regardless of how I feel. I do the planning, seed buying, planting, weeding and picking much of the time. There have been times I could not do the work that needed to be done and my partner came to the rescue. Tim knew we were growing food for the both of us. He is an artist and has no desire to farm, although does like to grow some foods and he is particular. Tim is also better at making his growing areas much cleaner than mine. He typically has small garden areas and I have big gardens! I just can’t seem to help myself when it comes to planting things.
We have always used a no-till method in the garden and mulched heavily. Tilling would have been very hard for me to do, as I did not have the physical strength. I often cannot hold a weed-eater as it vibrates my hands too much. I now have been able to use an electric weed-eater because it is easier to handle and vibrates less. In the past, when I was refusing to take RA medication, I could not handle any vibration. I could not even use a hoe and bump it on the ground without significant pain. My strength decreased gradually over the years as the pain increased. Tim did more and more, and I did less and less. I was a little stubborn and did not want to take medication. I finally realized that if I wanted a good quality life, I needed to take medicine, which I started about 6 years ago. That has definitely been a game changer and has helped me slowly rebuild my muscles and regain my strength.
I know that many people have tried medicines and they have been unsuccessful. Also, I am aware that not everyone with RA can do what I have done. I don’t want anyone to think that we are all alike. Each person has to do what they are able to do. Some people may have no family support. I am not saying everyone should have a farm. I am saying that often when we really want to do something, we can find a way to get it done. It may not be perfect, but it can help our spirit and our body! I hope to keep gardening and farming until I am very old. That may not be possible, but I contend that moving, being outside and working in the dirt will be very good for my immune system, my muscles and joints and my spirit!
