My Autoimmune Story - or Life's a Roller Coaster
I know I'm not the first or only person to have more than 1 autoimmune disorder, but I'm currently up to not 1, not 2, not 3, but 4! Yep - I have Type 1 diabetes, hypothyroidism, MS, and vitiligo. Oy...the hypothyroidism is easy - take a pill daily. The vitiligo doesn't really concern me at my age other than to be cautious in the sun. Diabetes and MS are the real challenges.
And now something else is going on that could be another autoimmune-related issue - not sure yet, but I have symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis! We ruled out Addison's disease, and are working on ruling out cancer (!!), but the sudden stiffness and pain in my fingers, as well as stiffness and pain in both shoulders, is suspicious at best. And the unplanned weight loss...meaning unplanned muscle loss! I spent 6 years working on my muscles and now my triceps are absolutely gone...just hanging skin is there now. Very discouraging. So I'm continuing to plod forward and looking to find out what the latest issue is (translates to LOTS of different doctor visits and tests coming up). Hang in there - life is definitely a roller coaster.
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