Sometimes when lupus
enters your world,
other things and people
seem to disappear.
Your life changes to
a certain degree
and your feelings change
right with it.

Pain may strike when
you least expect it.
Your body and your mind
may change,
then do a reverse action
without warning.
Sounds strange I know,
but lupus is a
very strange illness to have.

Lupus has many faces
and you never know
which face may show next.
Although there are times of relief,
Lupus can go into remission , it
may last for days, weeks, months
or even years.

Written By:
©"KSS"

"Lupus Foundation of America"

Achy joints (arthralgia)
Frequent fevers of more
than 100 degrees F.
Arthritis (swollen joints)
Prolonged or extreme fatigue
Skin rashes
Anemia
Kidney involvement
Pain in the chest on deep breathing (pleurisy)
Butterfly-shaped rash across the cheek and nose
Sun or light sensitivity (photosensitivity)
Hair loss
Abnormal blood clotting problems
Raynaud's phenomenon (fingers turning white
and or blue in the cold)
Seizures
Mouth or nose ulcers

Who could develope lupus ?

It is difficult to determine
an exact number of lupus cases,
and estimates vary widely.

Based on the results of several nationwide
telephone surveys, the Lupus Foundation of America
estimates that approximately 1,400,000
Americans have a form of the disease.
Despite the fact that lupus can affect
men and women of all ages,
lupus occurs 10 to 15 times more
frequently among adult females than adult males.
Lupus develops most often between ages 15 and 44.
Lupus is two to three times more common
among African Americans, Hispanics,
Asians, and Native Americans.
Only 10 percent of people with lupus
will have a close relative
(parent or sibling)
who already has lupus
or may develop lupus.
Only about 5 percent of
the children born
to individuals with lupus
will develop the illness.

Increased professional awareness and improved diagnostic
techniques and evaluation methods
are contributing to
the early diagnosis and treatment of lupus.
With current methods of therapy
80-90% of people
with lupus can look forward
to a normal lifespan.

"The Nether World"

I'm sure you have heard
of this place.
You know the one I mean.
Where it is neither
betwixt or between.

Neither happy nor Sad.
You never know what to expect.
Clear, crisp and clean or
Foggy, Furious and fuzzy.

You can not feel, merry or mad.
Love nor Hate.
Only different and alone.

What a clean, messey,
fuzzy, happy, sad,
sick, well, painfull, joyous,
world we live in.

This is the world known as
the Nether World.
Or as some of us know it,
The World of "Lupus".

© "KSS"
March 2002

Links you may want to check
Lupus Foundation Of America
Lupus Around The World
UK Lupus
National Institute Of Arthritis