Lupus Kills

When I was first diagnosed with lupus 18 years ago I had never heard of such an illness. What was lupus? The very first words I read were from a pamphlet handed to me by the nurse at my doctor’s office. It said: A disease with 1000 faces, the cause is unknown, there is no cure. It sent chills to my spine. I continued to read the list of some of the symptoms: excessive and profound fatigue or weakness; pain, stiffness, or swelling in the joints; a red rash over the cheeks and the bridge of the nose; unusual rashes on areas of the body exposed to the sun; prolonged flu-like symptoms of aching and fever; heart disease; kidney disease; forgetfulness, confusion; severe headaches. Many of the symptoms listed I had. It frightened me. Reading on: Lupus is a chronic autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks the body’s own healthy cells causing tissue damage, organ failure and in some cases, death; if not treated, lupus can be fatal. Tears streamed down my cheek. I feared the worst. Slowly, day by day following many doctors’ recommendations I gradually started to have fewer symptoms, but it took years. I am extremely grateful to have such a wonderful, understanding general practitioner, Dr. J. P. Farrer along with his helpful staff and I consider myself a very fortunate survivor. Today I manage the severity of my lupus disease by maintaining a good nutritional diet, going for walks and resting when my body tells me to, but the most powerful tool that I utilize everyday is prayer. It helps to alleviate my pain while leaving me with a great peace of mind.
There is no cure for lupus, as yet, but there is treatment. Since the manifestations of lupus are so different from one person to another, each patient is unique. What is best for one patient at a given time may not be good for another. Lupus can affect women, men and children, but 8 out of 10 are women of child-bearing ages from 14 to 55. There are more than 50,000 Canadians affected by this disease. Lupus Canada has designated May 10th as World Lupus Day. In 2008 it was the 7th annual Walk-a-Block for Lupus and various awareness events was held worldwide. We held our first Walk-a-Block on the Sunshine Coast at Davis Bay Seawall. The aim was to help educate people about Lupus, while at the same time raising funds to help carry on the work that will one day bring a cure for this disease and save lives. You can find more information at www.lupuscanada.org or call Lupus Canada toll free at 1-800-661-1468. That year, we raised $3,665.00 for Lupus Canada. I would like to thank everyone who participated with this fundraising event but especially the Gibson’s Thrift Shoppe for donating a whopping $3,000.00.