It has been 2 whole years since I was first diagnosed with Sjogren's Syndrome.....what have I learned?
There are so many things to tell! First and foremost, we are all different! You may find hundreds of others who have your same diagnosis, but each one is still an individual. Your flares will vary, the causes may vary. Your level of disease activity may be different than others'. You may or may not have co-existing conditions. What works to help you feel better may or may not work for another person.
We experiment, we try to help each other, we find what is best for our body--just like we did before we were diagnosed.
The symptoms may ebb and flow, but the reality is, you probably had this disease LONG before anyone realized it. Your disease did not start being what it is just out of the blue. I could say with some certainty that you had symptoms manifesting before a doctor told you about it.
Sjogren's is a crazy disease. You are not alone in having it. Doctors do not, for the most part, know much about it. There are good days and bad days.
Here is MY reality--I am still alive. I still can make choices that will benefit me or hurt me, but they are MY choices. I talk to others for ideas I may not have thought of and to educate those who know nothing at all about Sjogren's. WHY? Because until we talk about it, others will not get ANY help from doctors because no one--not even the patient--will know what their symptoms mean....
Live your life. Do not let Sjogren's steal your life & your joy.
