Information about lupus

Lupus is a disease that can affect many parts of the body. It can affect the joints, kidneys, skin, heart, or brain. In most people, only some of these parts of the body are affected.

In this PsychologyOnline article, we will bring you Information about Lupus.

Index

1. What is lupus?
2. What Causes Lupus?
3. What are the symptoms?
4. How Many Kinds of Lupus Are There?
5. Does Lupus, like other autoimmune diseases, have a psychological trigger?
6. Can you talk about a specific personality profile?
7. Before and after, although the previous psychological characteristics and the response to the diagnosis would have common denominators ...
8. How to face the diagnosis and not lose heart in the attempt.
9. What information is advisable to share with family, friends and the rest of the world?
10. How does the social stigma that weighs on this pathology act?
11. The day after, what variables change in the life of a person who suffers from a chronic disease such as Lupus, or Multiple Sclerosis, ...
12. Helpful tips

In those with Lupus, something bad happens to the body's immune system. We view the immune system as an army within the body with hundreds of defenders (known as antibodies). They defend the body, against external attacks, germs or viruses, they are called pathogens.

Instead in lupus the immune system becomes overly active and loses control. Antibodies do not distinguish tissues and attack both the healthy and the affectedThis causes inflammation, pain and swelling in the affected parts.

It is not known for sure what causes it and affects the immune system.

In some people, lupus is activated after being exposed to sunlight, infections, certain medications or other elements, It also reacts to hormonal changes and psychological pressures, there are many triggers of the periods of activity of this disease.

The symptoms are different from person to person. Some have mild symptoms and others, on the other hand, are more visible.

This is a difficult disease to diagnose. Very often it is confused with other pathologies. For that reason lupus has often been called "the great copycat."

The most common and most indicative symptoms of the disease are.

• Red rash or change in face color, shaped like a butterfly, along the cheeks and the bridge of the nose.
• Very painful and swollen joints.
• Unexplained fever above 38 degrees.
• Chest pain when breathing.
• Strange hair loss.
• Pale or purple fingers and toes due to cold or stress.
• Sensitivity to the sun
• Low red or white blood cell count.
• Feeling of fatigue and permanent tiredness.

Other symptoms may include, mouth sores and in the mucous membranes, depression, repeated miscarriages, frequent kidney problems, bone problems, it is actually a painful disease, both in the bones and in the muscles, (what is called myalgia). These symptoms are most important when they all occur together. Many people with lupus look healthy, it is not really a disease that is "seen" on the outside, but rather it is silent.

Systemic lupus erythematosus. (THEM)

It is the most complex and serious form of the disease. Systemic means that it can affect any part of the body. e affect any part of the body. This class can be mild or serious. If left untreated it can cause damage to internal organs.

Discoid Lupus

It is the lupus that affects the skin, with reddish spots, which later change to purple tones, sometimes leave scars, and spread throughout the body.

Medicated lupus

It is the one induced by some medicationsPeople affected by this type of lupus generally have the weakest symptoms and are not as serious.

The important thing is to know that lupus, nowadays he has treatments and it is important to always have a good treating doctor and a good psychologist, who help the patient and his family group in the course of the disease, as it presents periods of activity and periods of inactivity and periods of rest (plateau), You have to get informed and know the pathology well, to be able to help yourself, Lupus is treatable and you can have a good quality of life, with the illness. In pregnant women with Lupus, they are considered to be high-risk pregnancies, they must be carried by a specialized professional.

The answer is yes, the stress, dislikes, strong emotions, everyday problems, can influence in such a way that they manage to trigger a regrowth in this type of disease since any disease makes us rethink our lifestyle even more a chronicle in which the diag a chronicle in which the diagnosis produces us feelings of helplessness, anger, fear desolation, feelings of helplessness to resolve this situation in some cases there is an absolute impossibility of accepting and admitting that the so precious health.

If the disease is chronic our fantasy of SELF-SUFFICIENCY, INDEPENDENCE and INDESTRUCTIBILITY they fall apart, so we cannot accept that we are fallible.

I would not say that there is a specific personality profile since this disease as it is known attacks each patient differently and it behaves in different ways with each one. It is also good to clarify that it generally affects women more than men.

If it is known that one of the most predominant consequences psychologically speaking of this type of disease is the Depression. 40% of patients with Lupus suffer from it. 35% of patients who arrive at the dental section who arrive at the psychoneuroimmunodermatology section of the Hospital de Clínicas present as underlying grieving disorders inhibitions and the manifestations are accompanied by somatic symptoms, identification (role confusion, etc.) a certain hostility affective dullness, self-reproach and self-destructive behaviors, hyperreaction of social isolation or excessive care behaviors towards others., and generally manifest feeling fatigue and alterations in the dream. The long-standing link between Depression and Lupus throughout the outbreak and course of the disease is complemented by sleep problems, fatigue, lack of motivation, low self-esteem, and this produces a vicious cycle constant. Therefore, personality is not a common denominator as the psychological reaction that the disease triggers.

Faced with a diagnosis of chronic disease, there are very moving emotional reactions, there are very moving emotional reactions that will occur throughout the treatment. The so-called Adaptation Stress begins.

CAUSES

No healing for the time being. Unpredictable course of the disease. Undulating course of it. Being a disease that usually involves several organs and / or systems of our body requires a treatment carried out by several specialists and a constant pilgrimage by them a great dependence doctor-patient.

CONSEQUENCES

Uncertainty about the future, It is not known what to expect, when another crisis will appear, doubts arise with the medication, fears of permanent disability, of the changes that must be included in life. As there are no concrete life projects, we devalue ourselves. Lowers our self-esteem. Fear of losing the affections of those around us, because our appearance is altered by drugs, crises are unpredictable, our energy decreases, we lose job opportunities, our strength is not the herself. Tendency to isolation. Confusion. Alteration of the family environment.

In principle, we must accept that life sometimes does not give us what we expect and that life is unfair and sad at times that depends on us and the way In which we face the problems that arise we can make it more bearable, we must face life and WIN, we must face life and WIN. It is very important to know that ..WE ARE ALL DESERVED OF HAPPINESS... difficulties always arise on our way, but we must trust ourselves to be able to overcome them in all chronic diseases. ATTITUDE with which we continue our life.

Let's support ourselves in our family, let's look for containment, support, let's ask for help when we need it, we don't it will make us look weaker, on the contrary, it will help us in our fight, the greatest support is affection and knowing what WE ARE NOT THE ONLY ONE WHO SUFFERS FROM LUPUS.

As much as possible it is very important that both the patient and his family are informed about all the variables of the disease, your prognosis, diagnosis, the effects of medication, knowing how to recognize outbreaks, comment with those close to you when you feel wrong ASK FOR HELP the containment of our affections are a great palliative our affections are a great palliative to our ailments.

It is also highly recommended that our closest relatives, husband, children, parents accompany us in the consultations with the doctor and other specialists, together with the psychologist, this will help them to understand and contain us better, in turn to eliminate their doubts and fears, let's not forget that this involves a whole family since it radically changes our rhythm of lifetime.

Actually, socially, not much is known about Lupus, in general, society tends to discriminate against all those who do not consider "normal, healthy, cute, etc. "But this is largely due to ignorance on the subject, of course this represents a discomfort for the sick but it is in us to know WE ARE WORTH A LOT and we are not just a container but what counts is the content, I think that to the extent that content, I think that in the As many people begin to change their minds in this regard, many things will vary from the relationships in general.

It is important in a chronic disease to learn HOW TO LIVE WITH HER, we must accept that this will be with us the rest of our lives, we will have to be careful with all the symptoms that we see are manifest and go immediately to the doctor for this we must learn to know in depth the disease and how it affects us us, since as we said before, each person is affected differently, take into account all the indications and procure us with a POSITIVE ATTITUDE a good quality of life.

Accept the bodily changes that this disease brings us, and adapt to this in the best possible way. I think that what we must maintain is that despite everything we continue to be ourselves.

This was excerpted from the Oklahoma Lupus Association written by Jane Bozarth I think it's very important to keep in mind given my experience as a Lupus patient and as a professional helping other people who suffer from this and other pathologies Chronicles..

Deepen knowledge of the disease

• Learn to know the signs and symptoms that the disease is active.
• Keep in mind that Lupus differs from person to person.
• Encourage our family and friends to have a greater knowledge about the disease and greater knowledge about the disease and its effects.
• ASK FOR HELP
• Try to avoid physical and mental stress as much as possible.
• Include rest times within our schedules.
• Stay active within our tolerance levels.
• Assume a POSITIVE ATTITUDE.
• THERE IS A BETTER FUTURE
• Not returning to daily activities too soon after a stressful time or a flare-up.
• Do not be ashamed of the disease or its symptoms.
• Don't talk about the same problem all the time.
• Do not allow Lupus to be the center of our life but TO ACCEPT make it part of it.
• Do not forget that our family environment is also under stress when we feel bad.
• Do not isolate ourselves.
• Do not get used to doing less than what we are capable of doing.
• Not feeling guilty for having periods when we feel weak or depressed.

WE NEVER LOSE HOPE... LIFE IS WONDERFUL.

This article is merely informative, in Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.

If you want to read more articles similar to Information about lupus, we recommend that you enter our category of Clinical psychology.