You know how it is when you see all these awareness posts filling your feeds on different social networks - how annoying you sometimes feel it is and how could this really make a difference? And then something happens that makes you think that whatever little thing you do to raise awareness will make a world of difference?
That is why I continue to do awareness posts and this particular one has hit home with me.
Last month one of my Lacquerhead friends almost died from seizures related to her Lupus diagnosis. What is the most amazing thing is that
between her 28 seizures in the hospital, 3 in the car ride home and 2 minor
ones last week she has survived 31 seizures in 2 weeks. I am still in awe of the almost-miracle thing going on here.
So in honour of her battle and her constant positive outlook on life and the grim future prospect in particular, I am wearing this purple mani:
The Lupus Awereness colour is purple. I've just bought Girly Bits Twitterpated and it was an obvious choice when I saw the sunny weather. Holo Polish FTW!!!
The dots are Hits Specialita No Olimpo Dionisio.
And the symbol for Lupus Awareness is the butterfly, due to one of the symptomatic rashes which has a butterfly shape. My butterfly was created with Vivid Lacquer Plate 004.
This picture was taken in shade - I love the colour on Twitterpated here.
Some Lupus facts:
Lupus is an incurable Auto Immune disease that affects 1.5 million Americans and 5 million world wide, 9 out of 10 sufferers are female and you are more likely to get it if you are Black, Asian or Hispanic than if you are Caucasian - which is probably why we know so little about it in Europe.
There
are 3 different types:
Discoid Lupus affecting the
skin/hair/nails/joints/tendons.
Systemic Lupus that can attack
any organ/organ system at any time.
Drug induced Lupus usually attributed to extreme chemo/rx drugs or hardcore street drug
use.
These are the 11 symptoms to look for, you need to show four to get diagnosed:
- Malar rash – a rash over the cheeks and nose, often in the shape of a butterfly
- Discoid rash – a rash that appears as red, raised, disk-shaped patches
- Photosensitivity – a reaction to sun or light that causes a skin rash to appear or get worse
- Oral ulcers – sores appearing in the mouth
- Arthritis – joint pain and swelling of two or more joints in which the bones around the joints do not become destroyed
- Serositis – inflammation of the lining
around the lungs (pleuritis) or inflammation of the lining around the
heart that causes chest pain which is worse with deep breathing
(pericarditis)
- Kidney disorder – persistent protein or cellular casts in the urine
- Neurological disorder – seizures or psychosis
- Blood disorder – anemia (low red blood
cell count), leukopenia (low white blood cell count), lymphopenia (low
level of specific white blood cells), or thrombocytopenia (low platelet
count)
- Immunologic disorder – abnormal anti-double-stranded DNA or anti-Sm, positive antiphospholipid antibodies
- Abnormal antinuclear antibody (ANA)
Besides these symptoms you could also have:
Fever (over 100° F)
Extreme fatigue
Hair loss
Fingers turning white and/or blue when cold (Raynaud’s phenomenon)
Make sure you educate yourself, as this is an invisible disease: You or someone you care for will not seem ill even though you are near death.
Learn more about Lupus here:
http://www.lupus.org/webmodules/webarticlesnet/templates/new_learndiagnosing.aspx?articleid=2241&zoneid=524
