Hi! I'm the "Singing Patient." I'm a comedian/ songwriter who happens to have a diagnosis of a chronic illness. I am doing better than most fo the folks I know with this illness, and I attribute it...
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Declaration of Independence
by
Carla U.
Posted in: Blog Posts in Lupus
Believe me, you want to hang onto your independence as long as you can. i have lived in my folks' house after being out on my own, and while i was grateful to not be on the street, it made me feel like a failure, not to mention the total lack of privacy. Then, i lived with a relative who sucked the life out of me with daily 4-hour rants recoun...
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Did I mention I love acupuncture?
by
Carla U.
Posted in: Blog Posts in Lupus
Fiends and family know NOTHING about autoimmune disease if they tell you to exercise through the fatigue! That can make things worse!!! that is dumb advice. It shows the lack of understanding of what happens when your body goes autoimmune. Often the things that are good for you- vigorous exercise, immune stimulants, sunshine- are actually quite ...
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What' So Bad About Lupus?
by
Carla U.
Posted in: Blog Posts in Lupus
A friend asks: "Have you ever spoken to someone and told them you had Lupus only to have them say to you that they know someone who has it that that person is " in Perfect Health?" Then they look at you as if to ask what's wrong with you that you think its so bad. Its aggravating to say the least." The first and most obvious...
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lupus and money
by
Carla U.
Posted in: Blog Posts in Lupus
Universal health care. Poor Hillary Clinton saw this issue as being of utmost importance in 1993. Everyone criticized her and shot down her proposals. She has taken a lot of flack for being a powerful smart woman, and the idea was a head of its time. *She* was ahead of her time- but then, someone had to open the door to ideas like this one. We ...
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Marriage and lupus
by
Carla U.
Posted in: Blog Posts in Lupus
Being married can be both wonderful and stressful at the same time. I was surprised by the guilt one feels when you realize that marriage is a lot of work- like you think you should be all sunshine and happiness, but now you realize- crap! there's a lot more cleaning and cooking to do! And, don't want to complain about it, but there is a big ti...
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to work or not to work
by
Carla U.
Posted in: Blog Posts in Lupus
very cool idea for a book: Women, WOrk and Autoimmune Disease: Keep Working, Girlfriend!" I watch Suze Orman a lot, and she mentions something I had a hard time putting my finger on, which is if you decide to stop working for whatever reason, illness or not, and depend entirely on your spouse, a couple things happen. One, you lose some or ...
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this is an announcement
by
Carla U.
Posted in: Blog Posts in Lupus
Really, this is an announcement. The "Folly Pogs" (I keep saying and typing polly fogs, must be the lupus fog!) of England asked me to make them a public service announcement. I've spent a bit of mental energy trying to overcome my shortcomings in the tech department to make this video. I hope it came out OK. in the video, I only mention fibrom...
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Hands offa my kidneys!
by
Carla U.
Posted in: Blog Posts in Lupus
The evil kidney biopsy is on my list of 15 least medical procedures, along with catheter and root canal. the thing about kidney biopsy is that while your doc may tell you it is necessary, many other docs will tell you it is not. and according to whatever book it was i was reading the first time i was *told* I *needed* a biopsy, these biopsies a...
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Post-partial depression
by
Carla U.
Posted in: Blog Posts in Lupus
Last week I wrote about my visit to the dentist and how much the Novocain shot hurt. I actually had to get two shots, because I could still feel the drill after the first one. But the drill didn't really hurt, so I asked the dentist not to give me a second shot, but she did anyway. The second that Novocain entered my system I instantly felt like...
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Take a survey on blogging and health/ coping
by
Carla U.
Posted in: Blog Posts in Lupus
Hey everybody! Justin Guild, a research assistant at Purdue Univ. contacted me about putting a link here to their survey on how blogging and online communities affect (presumably help) in coping with chronic health conditions. I think it's pretty cool that doctors are interested in seeing what things can help us that we can do on our own (e.g., ...
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Jaw-dropping day at the dentist
by
Carla U.
Posted in: Blog Posts in Lupus
oh if only my dentist was as wacky as Steve Martin. so far, i have survived visit 2 of 3 scheduled visits in the remodeling of my mouth (structural, not cosmetic- getting my first cleaning in 14 years, 2 molars restored with porcelain and a nightguard made. you night-grinders know what this is: we get to look like Rocky every night. Such a turno...
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That's inflammatory! Part 4
by
Carla U.
Posted in: Blog Posts in Lupus
The Biblical Diet is the focus of Part 4 of this series. Who would know better than our Creator what makes our bodies function properly, and give us overall well-being? Feeling whole in body creates a calm in our minds and souls and helps us in every area of life. ~~~~~ Meat: ~~~~~ Beef: on special occasions Lamb: on special occasions Pork: ne...
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That's inflammatory! Part 3
by
Carla U.
Posted in: Blog Posts in Lupus
The Chinese have a great saying: Eat to Live, not Live to Eat. We Americans live in a "Eat to Live" culture. We eat foods we like, rather than foods that are good for us. We think eating should be fun, and every meal should be a "treat." And there is often no eye open to the consequences of our eating habits. The when our arteries harden up or w...
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That's inflammatory! Part Two
by
Carla U.
Posted in: Blog Posts in Lupus
Inflammatory? Not sure. toxic, yes. Sodium Nitrate. This chemical is used in meat packing plants to preserve meat. Pretty much any meat you buy at your average grocery store or deli is going to have been preserved with sodium nitrate. I sincerely doubt that the guy behind the deli or meat counter wants to kill you by feeding you something toxic....
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That's inflammatory! Part One
by
Carla U.
Posted in: Blog Posts in Lupus
What not to eat if you have autoimmune disease: part one I know for a fact that lupus is characterized by inflammation. I can only imagine other autoimmune diseases also have inflammation as a characteristic. So wouldn't it behoove us to avoid behaviors and situations that increase inflammation? There are many irritants out there that trigger a...
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that's inflammatory!
by
Carla U.
Posted in: Blog Posts in Lupus
What not to eat if you have autoimmune disease: part one I know for a fact that lupus is characterized by inflammation. I can only imagine other autoimmune diseases also have inflammation as a characteristic. So wouldn't it behoove us to avoid behaviors and situations that increase inflammation? There are many irritants out there that trigger a...
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Pick your poison
by
Carla U.
Posted in: Blog Posts in Lupus
Wow. Comedian Bernie Mac, dead at 50. The papers say it was pneumonia. My husband said "Who dies of pneumonia anymore, especially at age 50?"Someone who is on immune suppressants, that's who. Bernie Mac had sarcoidosis, an autoimmune disease, and it was being controlled by immune suppressants. The doctors declared his condition to be "in remissi...
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lupus- a laughing matter?
by
Carla U.
Posted in: Questions & Answers in Lupus
i've pretty much given up on people "getting it" if they haven't had some direct experience with lupus or something similar. i get tired of being judged or blamed for my illness, so i generally don't tell anyone I even have a chronic illness until I figure out they can be trusted not to say or do something hurtful/ idiotic.it ticks me off that c...
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Lupus and weight gain
by
Carla U.
Posted in: Blog Posts in Lupus
I was just interviewed for a magazine for an article on lupus and weight issues.1)Are you generally happy with your weight?of course not~! i'm a woman!!there was a point where i was too thin which i didn'tmind except for i had no butt and i could not sitcompfortably anywhere.2) How do you manage your weight? Are you able to exercise/pursue phy...
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i like kung fu movies?
by
Carla U.
Posted in: Questions & Answers in Lupus
I never thought I'd say this, but I really like Kung fu movies.My husband has been studying all kinds of martial arts for 15 years now, and I did about 6 months' training in American Karate. I was never any good at fighting, since we never practiced sparring and I'm pretty much as pacifist anyway; I really just joined the bunch for social reason...
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