Readers who are familiar with William Shakespeare’s play “Macbeth” will know that belladonna is a poison. So what does that have to do with potatoes? Everything — and nothing. Both white potatoes and belladonna are from the Solanaceae family, commonly known as nightshades. Red potatoes are also in…
Following your lupus diagnosis, visits to doctor’s offices begin to multiply. Sometimes I’ll have consultations with three different doctors in the same week. If they order tests, it means even more appointments. Having spent all of this time in medical clinics, I have learned that if I come…
I cannot deny it: I love bread. Toast with peanut butter has been my go-to breakfast for a long time. But as I am now learning, both of these foods can cause inflammation in my body. So what’s a bread-loving girl to do? Look for substitutes that taste…
What is an anti-inflammatory diet? An anti-inflammatory diet is designed to reduce the inflammation in your body. Certain foods are known to contribute to inflammation, but it can also develop as a result of too much stress and too little exercise. It also leads to conditions such as arthritis, depression,…
I used to be a neat, organized person. Being diagnosed with lupus, however, turned my world upside down. I was bombarded with new words, new medications, and new doctors. Suddenly, I had to have a dozen different tests for things I had never heard of before. And somehow, the…
My rheumatologist’s office is almost two hours away from my home. He is highly regarded in his field, so I make the trip to see him every three months. I trust him to give me good advice. Starting at my first appointment, he has asked many questions and listened carefully…
When your list of chronic illnesses keeps getting longer, it’s hard to find things to be grateful for. It is so easy to sink into a deep depression and think that you will never be happy again. These kinds of thoughts can become self-fulfilling prophecies. Slowly but surely, I…
My doctor sent me for a sleep study after my husband told him how loudly I snored. I tried to tell them that it wasn’t that bad, but as it turned out, it was. The night of the study, they put a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machine…
Lupus ‘brain fog’ is aptly named When I am tired or under a lot of stress, my brain gets foggy. The official name for this is cognitive dysfunction, but it’s commonly referred to as brain fog because it’s like trying to find your way in a dark, dense…
If you have never experienced a migraine, you’re a lucky person. A migraine is the mother of all headaches: a throbbing, pounding pain so bad it makes you nauseated. Light hurts your eyes; even a regular bulb in a lamp will have you squinting. Sounds ricochet around in your…