Society girl with rare wrist disease talks about how she really does suffer for her art

Some say that to be an artist, you should suffer for your art. 

If this really were the case, I'd be a master. 

For over the course of a ten-year career as a portrait and wildlife artist  -  painting Prince Charles and his horse, and counting lyricist Sir Tim Rice and footballer Teddy Sheringham as clients  -  I have often been in excruciating pain, wincing while holding even the lightest paint palette.

Dealing with the pain: Georgea Blakey at work in her Fulham home

I suffer from a rare condition called Kienböck's disease (KD), which affects a wrist bone called the lunate. There are nine small bones in the wrist and the lunate is the central, pivotal one. 

With KD, the blood supply to the bone gets cut off, causing it to die, leading to pain and stiffness. 

If left untreated, the bone collapses, shifting the position of other bones in the wrist, causing permanent disfigurement and eventually osteoarthritis in the joint. 

While the exact cause of KD is not known, repeated fractures, compression and extreme wrist positions  -  such as those required in gymnastics, or in my case, hurtling about on horses  -  are thought to trigger the condition. 

My symptoms began in 1992 when I was 21, working as a groom and aspiring to be a professional polo player in a horse yard in Berkshire. I had 25 ponies to feed, muck out and keep fit so it didn't seem unusual to be in a bit of pain after a hard day. 

But the pain, in my left wrist, soon became so bad I could barely hold the reins when riding, so I went to Charing Cross Hospital in London. 

I was told I had a bad sprain or minor fracture and that I should rest my arm. So what did I do? I went back to the stables and carried on, guzzling painkillers to get through. 

A couple of days later, I received a phone call from a senior doctor who suspected something more serious. Further tests revealed that blood was not flowing to my lunate bone and that I had developed KD. 

My arm was put in a cast to immobilise it and help re-establish the blood supply. But six weeks later there had been no improvement. The bone was dead and my equestrian career was over  -  I was devastated. 

After looking at my X-rays, my surgeon decided the bone should be replaced with a prosthetic one. But my body rejected it and it was removed. 

Next, the surgeon removed another three wrist bones. Metal rods were inserted to keep the remaining bones in place while the new joint became stable. 

Once it was, the rods were extracted. But I was still in pain, and because of the KD I had also developed carpal tunnel syndrome. 

This occurs when too much pressure is put on the nerve in the centre of the wrist, causing tingling, weakness and muscle damage in the hand. I needed yet another operation. It helped but did not eliminate the pain. So after five years and five operations, I was no better. 

Forced to give up sport, I decided a far safer pastime was painting. I'd always loved drawing animals so was ecstatic when I was accepted to train at Chelsea College of Art. Upon graduation, I set up a business as a portrait artist. 

It's sad I will never play polo but I feel happy with my lot. And these days I have another project to keep my hands busy  -  a baby girl, Romilly, who is five months old. 

I'm still in pain but I've learned to deal with it  -  and anyway, after a 
hard day's work, what else is a stiff vodka and tonic for?