ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Bill Johnson's garden is a place where he can just be himself, even as he deals with arthritis.

“I’m always glad to show off my garden,” Johnson said. 

What You Need To Know

  • The North Carolina Center for Health and Wellness at UNC Asheville is putting a bigger focus on helping people with arthritis

  • The CDC awarded the center a $2 million grant to create access to health and wellness across North Carolina for adults at no cost

  • The evidence-based programs are not only for arthritis patients but also for any adults who are inactive, experience pain while being active or have a chronic condition

He has arthritis in his back and bone spurs, which can make bending down a challenge.

“I keep plants where I can reach them and maintain them,” Johnson said. “With my arthritis, on a good day I can mow the yard, and on a bad day, I’ve just mowed the yard.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Adults with arthritis can decrease pain and improve function by about 40% by being physically active.”

The North Carolina Center for Health and Wellness at UNC Asheville recently received a $2 million grant to help create more evidence-based programs for arthritis patients.

“These programs have been proven to help or prevent or mitigate arthritis,” Nadia Mazza, project manager of the CDC grant said. 

The programs include physical activity and educational programs.

“Those are more educational programs for folks to learn tools and strategies to managing their arthritis or other chronic conditions,” Mazza said.

She says clinicians can refer patients to these programs and community organizations can offer their locations for these programs to take place. 

“We’re also going to try to reach those most impacted by arthritis,” Mazza said.

More than 27% of North Carolinians deal with arthritis, which is what makes these programs available statewide at no cost, so valuable. 

Johnson has dealt with arthritis for several years. When it gets bad enough, arthritis is not only painful, but it can limit his range of motion.

“I got to the point where I couldn’t twist to look out of the car window to drive and getting in and out of the car. In and out of my easy chair even was a bit of a challenge,” Johnson said.

At some point, he even fell.

“I took a big face fall, and I had very limited core strength to recover as I was falling. I actually hit the floor pretty good. It sent me to the ER actually,” Johnson said.

He used to participate with physical therapy, but with the cost, maintaining it adds up. That’s when his neighbor introduced him to tai chi.

“I’ve got a better range of motion and less pain than I’ve had in a good long time, and I think tai chi is the reason for that,” Johnson said. 

For Johnson, he says he saw changes within three weeks of exercising through tai chi. 

“I’m no longer afraid of losing my center of balance,” he said.