When 12-year-old Juliette Harrison learned she had juvenile arthritis, she didn't think of herself. She thought of others with the same disease and how she could help.
The Saline girl has crocheted about 40 stuffed animals with arthritis--red patches on their elbows and knees--for other children and teens who suffer from arthritis at a young age.
Her goal is to ensure every kid at the University of Michigan's C.S. Mott Children's Hospital's rheumatology clinic who wants one could have a cat, dog, bunny, snowman, elephant or lion companion for comfort.
"She knows one of the best ways to heal is to help other people," said her mother, Calesta Harrison.
Juvenile arthritis occurs in 1 in 1,000 kids. Caught early enough, patients can go on to lead normal lives, said Becky Thompson, a nurse practitioner at C.S. Mott Children's Hospital's rheumatology clinic.
Symptoms of juvenile arthritis include swollen joints, stiff joints in the morning and limping.
For Juliette, it all started in March with a swelling on the back of her knee. X-rays, MRIs and blood tests didn't reveal the cause of the swelling, and finally, her pediatrician suggested visiting Mott's rheumatology clinic.
She was diagnosed and started treatment in July.
Once Juliette had the diagnosis, it took a few months to figure out what medications would work for her, her mother said. She's taking medication combined with 12 weeks of low-dose chemotherapy.
"It's definitely working," Harrison said. "She's doing great."
The disease was tough on Juliette, who is a runner and horse-back rider.
Since Juliette couldn't run or ride horses over the summer, she settled on swimming and kayaking to stay active during the summer. She's walking and riding an exercise bike this winter.
After the diagnosis, Juliette wanted to go to the family's cabin for a time to work through her emotions, find a doll with arthritis to take to her appointments and to help others through a diagnosis and treatment.
Harrison couldn't find any such dolls, so she contacted an artist on Etsy to make an arthritis doll for Juliette. The doll had a cyst on the back of her knee and reddened knees, just like Juliette.
While wondering what she could do for others, Juliette, who is homeschooled, had the idea of making stuffed animals with arthritis.
Harrison said her daughter recognized she is lucky and will likely make a full recovery, while some kids with the disease are bound to a wheelchair.
She made three prototypes, while Harrison contacted Mott to see if she could distribute them.
Thompson said she thought it was a great idea, and the arthritis animals have been popular with young kids and teenagers alike.
Juliette has since ventured into other creations; she's working on droids from Star Wars.
She took a bag of 30 homemade stuff animals to Mott on Dec. 23, and that's just the beginning.
Charles Harrison, her father, made a website, arthritisanimals.org, for Juliette to put a call out to other to make more arthritis animals.
"We're super proud of her. We think it's great," Calesta Harrison said.
Lindsay Knake is the K-12 education reporter for The Ann Arbor News. Follow her on twitter or contact her at 989-372-2498 or lknake@mlive.com.