Tatum O'Neal shares photo of scars and bruises from rheumatoid arthritis: 'It's been very difficult'

Actress says 'I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy'

Tatum O'Neal shares photo of scars and bruises from rheumatoid arthritis (Getty)

Tatum O’Neal has opened up about her struggle with rheumatoid arthritis in an Instagram post showing her scars and bruises.

On Wednesday, the actress shared a photo of her back in which cuts and multiple red marks from heating pads can be seen.

“Living with rheumatoid arthritis,” she captioned the photo. “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. 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.”

The 56-year-old concluded the post adding that “rheumatoid arthritis can go f*** itself” before adding the hashtag #rheumatoidarthritiswarrior.

Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammatory disorder that occurs when your immune system mistakenly attacks your own body’s tissues.

The symptoms of the disease, which include pain, swollen or stiff joints, and fatigue or fever, can vary in severity, but often symptoms will spread to other parts of the body as the disease progresses.

In addition to your joints, it can affect a wide variety of body systems including the skin, eyes, lungs, heart and blood vessels.

In response to the photo, fans of the actress have expressed their support and shared their own tips for dealing with the disease.

“Sending healing prayers and love to you,” one person wrote. “Tiger balm is my go to and plenty of alkaline water. Lately been focusing on what I eat to minimise the chronic pain from rheumatoid arthritis.”

Another said: “I know how you feel, hang in there.”

In the comments, O’Neal thanked her fans for the comments and explained that she would be going to the doctor to receive another infusion of prednisone, a steroid, to see if “we can get the inflammation down”.

“It’s been very difficult with ankles that are so inflamed,” the actress added. “I’ve never experienced anything like this in my life.”

This is not the first time O’Neal has shared details of her battle with the disease. Earlier this month, she shared a photo of herself and her dog and explained that she is having trouble texting so "if I don't text you back I promise it's nothing personal". In December 2019, the She’s Funny That Way actress posted a photo of the medication she was prescribed to ease her symptoms.