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…
Learning to Live with Lupus — Darla Gay
Darla, who lives in Arkansas, was diagnosed with lupus in 2015. As she grows into her new normal, she created this column to help others with lupus know they are not alone. She writes about hunting down the root causes to her symptoms and side effects.
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On a recent morning, I was lying in bed checking my emails. There was one from the hospital with test results from my last visit. A few days earlier, I had tried a new medication and landed in the emergency room. It turned out to be a bad reaction to…
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…
I’ve been overweight most of my life. In high school, I thought I was fat! Looking back at pictures from that time, I wish I was that size again. Before my lupus diagnosis, I was 20-25 pounds over my ideal weight — I thought I was huge. Today, I would…
Having lupus is hard enough, but when a full-time job is added in, it’s almost unbearable. Sleep is always an issue. It seems like we never get enough. And then taking a shower uses up what little energy we have left. We’re exhausted by the time we…
I used to think winter was the most depressing time of the year. I hated to see the leaves fall off the trees. I couldn’t wait for spring when the flowers started blooming again. Now that I have experienced true depression, I know the difference. There is a form…
I’ll always remember the day I found out I have lupus. It sticks with me like the memory of where I was the day Elvis died. It is a dividing line between the former “normal” days and my “new normal.” Everyone has different symptoms that lead them to make that…
Recent Posts
- To my ‘forever nurse,’ who finally gave me my diagnosis of lupus
- New analyses show Benlysta may aid flare control, kidney health
- Can art therapy help lupus patients improve cognitive function?
- With chronic illness, checking in means asking, ‘How ya really doin’?’
- FDA approves Gazyva as lupus nephritis treatment
