Speech On Lupus

     In conclusion Lupus is definitely a very serious disease that we must learn more about. My great aunt had Lupus for over ten years and during that time suffered in ways no person should have to. She would fall down constantly and break bones. Near the end of her life, she would break bones doing stuff as simple as getting out of bed.

As a group, we have close personal connections to people that suffer from this disease. Our efforts are to raise awareness with students of the symptoms because people who suffer with lupus are among us every day and we cannot comprehend the struggle that they are going through. When creating the pamphlets that we will use to educate the masses, we will include stories of people who suffer from this disease. By including the personal testimonies it will allow students to understand how lupus affects the victim’s everyday life. Once students understand how painful it to live with this disease, they will be aware of the symptoms and be able to educate others. Grasping what people with this disease go through and what they suffer from, has motivated our group to inform others of how important knowing the symptoms of lupus and how important the quest for a cure is. The reasoning is that this is a genetic disease that is affecting 1.5 million Americans and a total of 5 million throughout the world, and there has yet to be a cure for this disease, just treatments to help the sufferers through their

Joint pain is common in Lupus. Patients suffer from arthritis-like pain, swelling in the joints, redness and stiffness. These symptoms involve one or more joints.

Lupus is an autoimmune disease that attacks women between the ages of 15 and 40. It occurs less often in men than in women. The people affected by lupus vary depending on the country or region. In the US alone, the prevalence rate is highest among Asians of Hawaii, blacks of Caribbean origin, and Native Americans of the Sioux, Arapahoe, and Crow tribes. Lupus is a disease that affects the immune system. We can think of the immune system as an army within the body with hundreds of defenders (known as antibodies). They defend the body from attack by germs and viruses. In lupus, however, the immune system becomes overactive and creates antibodies that attack healthy tissues in the body, such as: the skin, kidneys, lungs, heart and brain.

One complication about lupus, is the flares that individuals will experience. People with this disease must have blood tests to predict these flares. When a lupus flare occurs, people will usually notice a return of the symptoms they experienced previously, but sometimes they will notice new symptoms. Some may be fever, swollen joints, increase in fatigue, rashes, sores or ulcers in the mouth or nose. A temperature over 100 degrees, not due to an infection, is often a helpful sign in identifying a flare. Other complications are it can cause insomnia, extreme fatigue, depression and poor body image. It also affects the central nervous system involvement which can cause memory and concentration difficulties. In some cases it can cause seizures. There are also risks in pregnancy such as stillbirth, or the mother may develop toxemia of pregnancy/preeclampsia which can cause things such as high-blood pressure, swelling and transient diabetes. Toxemia of pregnancy can be dangerous because it can cause spontaneous abortions or strokes. People with lupus also tend to get depressed because of the pain, fatigue and side effects from medication. The depression can be actually cause a flare in lupus in some cases.

Szuda, Stephanie “Health: Life with Lupus.” The Times. 11 Jan 2008. 19 Nov 2010. <Mywebtimes.com>

ANA: test for these autoantibodies (very general); DsDNA (+): Making antibodies to and attacking own DNA; Anti-Sm (+): these antibodies generally interfere with the cells metabolism and are responsible for the symptoms specifically seen with SLE. Here, they are specifically targeted at smooth muscle. CRP elevated: also indicates presence of inflammation, but is more specific towards disease activity; ESR elevated: indirectly indicates the activity of the disease and presence of inflammation; C3 and C4 (decreased): C3 and C4 usually attack the membranes of viruses and bacteria, but in the case of lupus, they attack the own body’s cells. When C3 and C4 suggest the disease is active

Reducing daily stress can help control lupus symptoms. “Today, physicians treat lupus using a wide variety of medicines, ranging in strength from mild to extremely strong. Prescribed medications will usually change during a person’s lifetime with lupus.” (Lupus Foundation of America). A rheumatologist, a doctor who specializes in diseases of the joints and muscles, usually treats people with lupus. If lupus has caused damage to a particular organ, other specialists will be consulted. a dermatologist for cutaneous lupus, a cardiologist for heart disease, a nephrologist for kidney disease, a neurologist who studies brain and nervous system disease, or a gastroenterologist for gastrointestinal tract disease. A woman with lupus who is thinking about possibly having a baby needs an obstetrician who specializes in high-risk pregnancies. Once a person is diagnosed with lupus a doctor will set up a treatment plan. usually involving trying to reduce inflammation, suppressing the overactive immune system, reducing flares and treating them when they occur, and minimizing damage to any

A butterfly to many individuals may speak of love, trust, or opportunity yet to some a butterfly could speak of trouble, pain, and vacancy. The butterfly, now attached to a sickening infection, has turned into the image of a rising disease known as Lupus. For many the fight to cure Lupus has taken a major role in their lives.

Lupus is a condition that few people know about. Based on the results of a survey from the Lupus Foundation of America, around 72% of Americans aged 18-34 have either not heard of the disease or know nothing about it other than the name, despite this age group being at greatest risk for the condition. Lupus gained more attention from the public in 2015 after singer Selena Gomez announced she had been diagnosed with the condition in her late teens and underwent treatment for the disease. Lupus is a well-known autoimmune disorder disease. Which means that the body's immune system is not functioning normal and it's attacking the normal tissue, instead of the bacteria and viruses or in other words the body's immune system is hurting itself. The

Relevance: You might ask why should I care? How does this affect me or what is it exactly? Well the truth is that most people don’t realize they have Lupus. It so difficult to diagnose it is know as the “great imitator” since it resembles a variety of other diseases.

you've never heard of [lupus]. I knew nothing about it until I was diagnosed.... But to me, I'm healthier now than I've ever been before."

I was diagnosed with lupus in 2011 while pregnant with my beautiful baby boy Nicholas Ray. When I was told I had SLE Lupus confusion, misunderstanding, and grief took over me, I was handed a brochure about Lupus and the first word I saw was "disease." At the beginning I struggled because I was afraid, I let lupus define who I was. After understanding that lupus was affecting my kdineys, I became a leading advocate for Lupus and I realized how important it is to not let Lupus define who I am. My greatest blessing, my son, has become my motivation for fighting Lupus. I choose to speak as positively and loudly as I can about Lupus because it is a chronic illness that affects millions and we must find new approaches towards finding a cure for lupus.

Lupus is a chronic inflammatory disease marked by its effect on various parts of the body, including the joints, skin, blood, and kidneys. It is a condition in which the body's immune system attacks its own cells and tissues, resulting in pain, inflammation, and often damage to organs. Lupus involves the immune system. The immune system makes antibodies that work to protect the body against foreign substances like viruses and bacteria. Such foreign bodies are called antigens. When a person has lupus, his or her body is unable to determine the difference between antigens and the individual's cells and body tissues. As such, the immune system creates antibodies against the individual's own tissues. These antibodies are called autoantibodies. Depending on the type of lupus, a wide range of symptoms may be experienced, from rashes, hair loss, and achy, swollen joints to fever, anemia, and abnormal blood clotting. Though the disease can affect many parts of the body, individuals usually experience symptoms in only a few organs. There is no known cure for lupus. However,

For most people, Lupus is a mild disease affecting only a few organs. For others, it may cause serious and even life-threatening problems. People with Lupus are recommended to have regular medical appointments and take medications as prescribed. One of the most frustrating things for a Lupus patient is being sick. A person can look nice and healthy although they feel very bad inside. Another challenge is that there are no treatments for the most common complaint of Lupus patients: fatigue and memory loss.