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Lupus or not Lupus?

Autoimmune Diseases | Last Active: Feb 25 10:00pm | Replies (45)

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@michelecallahan

I have been all over the map with auto-immune disease symptoms, tests, etc., and I will add this: I was constantly looking for a specific diagnosis. I just wanted an answer. What I've learned is that it isn't that easy. There isn't a specific treatment even if you get a specific diagnosis. They treat symptoms, not the disease itself. For me, I had doctors that said probably Lupus, a doctor that said sjogrens, etc. But the bottom line turned out to be that it really doesn't matter which of the hundreds of auto-immune diseases it is because they treat the symptoms, not the disease. At least this has been MY journey. So after years of not knowing specifically which auto-immune disease I had, and being treated for a lot of various symptoms (usually with prednisone), I ended up having 2 heart attacks. A heart biopsy verified that I have lymphocytic myocarditis, and I received a heart transplant. But I also have various other auto-immune diseases, including psoriatic arthritis, fibromyalgia, and a few others. Again, when symptoms flare up, they get treated. I hope this is helpful for those that just want an answer. Sometimes, there isn't a specific answer. And I'm ok with that now that I truly understand how it works with treatment.

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To @michelecallahan, thank you for your reply and totally grasp the concept of what you are saying. I agree that a specific dx is not necessary, but my Drs are not even treating the symptoms!!
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