With Grace and Grit - Life with Chronic Illness
It’s widely prescribed and can be wonderfully effective. But the side effects can be wicked. Here are some tips for surviving the side effects of prednisone.
Have you ever taken prednisone? If you have a chronic illness or autoimmune disease that is inflammatory in nature – as so many are – you probably have. And taking prednisone is like balancing precariously on a double-edged sword somewhere between gratitude and madness.
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If you’ve been diagnosed with an autoimmune disease – or are waiting for a diagnosis – there are seven questions you should ask your rheumatologist.
It’s been a year and half since I was diagnosed with dermatomyositis, a rare autoimmune condition that causes fatigue, inflammation, severe muscle weakness and skin rashes. By the time I was diagnosed I had spent two weeks in the hospital – including a couple of days in intensive care.
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Ready to try the AIP diet? These three questions will help you determine if it’s right for you.
Fix me. That’s what I wanted to say when I finally received my myositis diagnosis. Since autoimmune diseases can’t be cured – but can be managed – I knew that I had a long road ahead of me (the rest of my life). And I had felt like crap for so long. I wanted and desperately needed some healing. This isn’t my first serious illness rodeo and I knew that part of my healing would be up to me.
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With more than 100 types of autoimmune disorders, the road to diagnosing autoimmune disease looks more like an obstacle course composed of traffic cones, construction barricades, and dead end signs.
Any guess as to how long it takes to diagnose an autoimmune disease? According to the AARDA it takes about 4.5 years. And it didn’t surprise me to hear that. With more than 100 types of autoimmune disease and a broad spectrum of symptoms, getting a diagnosis is like taking a long drive to an elusive destination without the benefit of a working GPS. Even though more than 20 million Americans have some type of autoimmune disease, I’m betting that each of the journeys to diagnosis was different.
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