Scleroderma: causes body-wide pain and stiffness from skin hardening and thickening, from the body's over-production of collagen.
Rheumatoid Arthritis: causes pain, swelling, and stiffness in mainly the fingers and wrists, from the body's immune reaction to it's own synovial fluid within the joints.
Raynaud's Syndrome: causes pain, discoloration, numbness, and a feeling of pins-and-needles in mainly the fingers and toes, from the body's reaction to cold temperatures by constricting veins resulting in the restriction of blood flow. Extended exposure to a cold climate could be extremely dangerous.
Sjogren's Syndrome: causes extreme dryness of the eyes and mouth, from the body's destruction of it's own tear and salivary glands.
Fibromyalgia: causes long-lasting, body-wide pain and tenderness in the joints, tendons, and muscles, and the cause is currently unknown but is believed to be associated with overactive nerves in the body.
Vasculitis: causes destruction of veins and arteries when the body attacks and destroys its own cells.
Mixed Connective Tissue Disease, also known as Undifferentiated Autoimmune Disease: I call it the Whack-A-Mole-Game Disease because it is defined by symptoms from ALL of known autoimmune diseases, the symptoms come and go and change over time, making the diagnoses and effective treatment of any one of those diseases impossible. Hence, the sufferer feels like he or she is involved in a perpetual Whack-A-%&#*-Mole game where most of the symptoms are not visible on diagnostic tests (x-rays, blood work, physical exam, etc.) and so the sufferer also experiences extreme frustration when meeting again and again with various medical specialists who become equally frustrated when a specific diagnoses becomes impossible. Most sufferers are eventually referred to psychiatrists resulting in the sufferer wondering 'am I just crazy?' as his or her world begins to fall apart.
. . . AND MORE! Are we having fun yet?
Because a diagnoses of Lupus and its Friends can take anywhere from several to more than 20 years (remember that the symptoms come and go and constantly change) most people spend years in pain, frustration, illness, and a depressed realization that something is wrong with them but because it defies diagnoses, they also experience the following:
* medical expenses exceeding the norm, which stresses family budgets
* provision of too many, and some unneeded, prescriptions (and their side-effects) by well-meaning medical professionals
* performance of unnecessary surgeries (and their after-effects) by well-meaning medical professionals in the search for a diagnoses
* loss of employment or restriction of upward mobility due to the employer's perception that the employee is not really sick but just an abuser of his or her personal and medical leave
* loss of important relationships as frustrated family members, friends, and others come to view the sufferer as a hypocondriac, 'needy' person, and or just lazy, depressed, and boring
* loss of the fun and meaning in life because energies are low, emotions are high, and physical pain is overwhelming at times
In the frenetic lives of today's modern working woman, some or all of the symptoms of Lupus and the Friends of Lupus are frequently attributed to over-work, stress, depression, family problems, hormonal issues, and more. It's enough to convince any woman that maybe she really is just stressed, overwhelmed, and needs to 'suck it up' and march forward without complaining. Women's propensity to place the needs of others above their own, especially when family and friends are concerned, only makes life more difficult as they attempt to ignore their physical and emotional symptoms and take care of everyone else. Men fare no better as they do their best to provide and 'be a man' as it is said.
Tomorrow's edition - Believe in Yourself and how to handle your chronic, possibly not yet diagnosed and treated autoimmune disease.
No comments:
Post a Comment