Newly diagnosed

sbesh81

I was diagnosed with Lupus after years of random and weird symptoms that could not be attributed to anything else. My mom has RA and my son is a type 1 Diabetic so I wasn't surprised to find that I too have an autoimmune disease. What I am struggling with is the lack of mental clarity. I am a student, so reading and writing papers is how I used to spend much of my time. Now, I can barely read short texts and I struggle to comprehend what they mean or the ability to be able to accurately type out my response. Even now as I type, I am struggling. Yes, my body hurts. Yes, I have a rash on my face that won't go away. Yes, I can't breathe sometimes. That is not what bothers me the most. I am upset that I feel like my mind and the mental abilities I have come to rely upon are leaving me. I am grieving this loss and wait for moments when the fog clears just a little and I feel like my old self.

JudyTD

Were you diagnosed with Systemic or Discoid?  I spent years going from Doctor to Doctor until I found a Physician who actually tested me and discovered I have SLE.  I never had a rash, and that confused the other physicians I consulted.  Yes, I grieved for the loss of my good health, and that took over a year.  I also have found that my symptoms can change from day to day, from week to week, from month to month.  The "fogginess" comes and goes - for me.  I find that when my SLE is at its worst I have memory issues, nothing severe, but I have to struggle with names and content when I am reading.  I just ride out the bad days, try to focus on the good days, realize it could be a lot worse.  I was diagnosed in 1983.  My biggest problem is fatigue, but I have learned to say "I can't" when asked to do something, and I do know if I push myself I will suffer for it.  Be kind to yourself - that's rule #1 for me.