Door 13 - Learning about Lupus

[Vesa]

'Tis the 13th day of Advent, and we have a list about Lupus up on our blog for you all to check out!

Here it is: blog.healthunlocked.com/201...

Learn more about this autoimmune condition, about the wonderful work that Lupus UK does and Facebook or Tweet our post, so that our community reaches as many people as possible who need that support.

Merry Wednesday everyone!

[lupus-support1]

Systemic lupus erythematosus, is hard to say, spell and understand. It mainly affects women during their child bearing years, at a ratio of 9:1. Nevertheless, men and children can suffer from SLE or lupus.

It is an autoimmune disease which is genetically linked to Rheumatoid Arthritis, Multiple Sclerosis and Type 1 Diabetes. Professor Yehuda Schoenfeld was asked to describe SLE as many people have never heard of it. He replied by saying that whereas in MS, the myelin sheath is attacked, because the body is confused between its own cells and foreign bodies, such as bacteria and viruses, but in lupus, every bodily system can be attacked: such as joints, muscles, ligaments and tendons, but also the blood, brain, heart, kidneys, lungs and gut.

Medicine is still trying to understand autoimmunity, but nevertheless, today there is better diagnosis and treatment available. There is every good reason to be hopeful.

SLE is difficult to diagnose and Professor Graham RV Hughes has acknowledged that unless a doctor is specifically looking for SLE, it can be missed. Indeed, many women have waited for decades for a diagnosis, often feeling that others think "it's all in the mind!"

There is one aspect that is frequently not acknowledge and that is the psychological impact on patients, families and carers. Unless someone is experiencing neuro-psychiatric manifestations, psychological support is frequently missing.

In 2000, LUpus Patients Understanding & Support (LUPUS) was founded to provide free information and free online psychological support. We were invited by HealthUnlocked to be here and should anyone need psychological support, then please do contact us.

Wishing everyone a Happy Chanukah, a Merry Christmas! If I have omitted any festivals, do let me know.

May we all have a happy and healthy 2018.

[Vesa in reply to lupus-support1]

Thank you for adding your voice and perspective to this conversation! Really interesting stuff.

Happy holidays!