Living With Lupus – Courtney Conlin

I am sharing my journey of living with Lupus because if I can help even one of you out there (or someone you know) and help you feel less alone (as I once did), well, then, mission accomplished.

Since childhood, I experienced not always feeling “normal”, sluggish and endless illnesses; all the while, never having answers. It was not until about five years ago that I became so sick and ended up in the hospital that the answers I needed began to flood in. And even though it was hard to hear that I have Lupus, gradually, there became a feeling of relief to finally know what was so wrong. 34 years of the unknown was not exactly a walk in the park.

Lupus can be unforgiving – especially if you do not have a handle on it. It is an auto-immune disease in which the immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissues within the body. The process of attacking the healthy tissues can also lead to vital organs being compromised. Call me crazy but I sure would like to keep all of mine.

I am fortunate enough to not only have a beyond caring, supportive husband and family but amazing teams of doctors that stretch from the Midwest to the East Coast. I understand that not all of us are able to have that care which is another reason I want to be here for others. If anything, I would like to share what I have learned along the way thus far in hopes to give a little guidance or hope.

I cannot tell you these words enough – DO NOT SURRENDER. I know that this is easier said than done because I did surrender. For a time I even felt hopeless. It is the main reason I believe it took that much longer to get a grip on this disease, accept it and stand up to it. The process of living with a disease like Lupus (and many others out there) is a balance; it is a balance between not letting it define you while accepting it. Let me be the one to tell you – it can be done!

My goal is to continue sharing what I hope are helpful pieces of advice, tidbits and information that will hopefully help guide others through dealing with this not-so-fun disease. And please, if it is yourself or you have someone in your life battling Lupus, always know I am here.

Photography By: Studio Preservation

Purple is the color of spring this year and it also happens to be the color of the Lupus ribbon.