Jega’s story: The empowering feeling of sharing experiences to help others

Jega Paramanathan, 25, from London, began suffering digestive issues just after starting university at age 18 and diagnosed with ulcerative colitis which impacted his health, education and social life. Jega graduated university last year and began volunteering for Arthritis UK since September 2025 and says sharing his own experiences to help others with arthritis has been ‘empowering’. 

Managing a tough diagnosis journey at university 

I was 18 and had just started at university when I started suffering digestive symptoms, stomach pain and high frequency bathroom trips. It was gradual at first but, before long, I was needing the bathroom around 10 times a day which significantly affected my life. If I was going to lessons, travelling anywhere, I’d need to know if there was a bathroom nearby. It was constant anxiety and I often had to cancel things. 

I went home in the November and saw my GP who, at first, thought I had IBS but six months later, a combination of MRIs and CT scans and sigmoidoscopy showed inflammation in my colon, and helped with a diagnosis of ulcerative colitis, a chronic digestive condition. 

At first, I was put on a steroid, which helped but had side effects, and a biologic which took longer to work but there were no side effects. I’m still on the biologic which has really decreased the intensity of symptoms although it doesn’t stop flare ups. 

By September 2021 I was also getting joint pain in my wrists, knees, elbows and ankles but my hospital team were confident the biologics would help with that. Although I’ve never had a formal diagnosis of arthritis, one of my histology reports did mention IBD associated arthritis. 

Doctors couldn’t tell me how to cope with symptoms while trying to complete my assignments which was hard. In a way taking time off for Covid was good timing for me as I wouldn’t have been able to keep going at that point but I did resumed my studies two years later and my symptoms were more under control which meant I graduated last September. I’m hoping to start a master's in psychology this September and wanted some volunteering experience because my own experience has sparked an interest in the health psychology of people with chronic health problems. 

The Arthritis UK community understand and reassure you that you are not alone. 

Volunteering with Arthritis UK has also been an opportunity to share my journey which I hope will help others. As a Patient Voice volunteer I talk about my lived experience managing a chronic health condition, about diagnosis and treatment and how these conditions affect me mentally, physically and socially. I’ve been doing this since last September and have found it really empowering. 

Sharing my story with health professionals can also help shape treatment plans and how they interact with people with arthritis and hopefully indirectly help patients feel better validated and reduce the stigma associated with living with chronic illness. 

My most recent involvement was sharing my journey of navigating joint pain with university students which may help shape how future physiotherapists efficiently diagnose patients who have chronic conditions with overlapping symptoms of joint pain and another disorder, it’s important as patients rarely often have more than one condition that they need help with. I also volunteer on the Arthritis UK Information Hub, signposting people with arthritis to specific resources and raising awareness at community and public events. 

Volunteering gives me the opportunity to translate my academic knowledge into practical experience supporting those with chronic pain. In the end, I want to help patients manage their health better and improve their quality of life. 

Making a difference is meaningful

I volunteer because, just a little of your time can make a life-changing difference to someone else living with arthritis. For anyone concerned about volunteering in person or about their energy levels, the flexibility of Patient Voice makes it such a great option because you can contribute remotely, at your own pace and still have a meaningful impact for people living with arthritis. 

Arthritis UK’s work is really important, connecting people with arthritis, building an online community where you can ask questions, socialise, make new friends with people who are going through similar things to you which is so valuable because, often, dealing with these symptoms can feel very lonely. The Arthritis UK community understand and reassure you that you are not alone.