It’s not like we want to be sick. But we are feeling sick and want to know exactly why. It’s not in our heads.

Man first of all, I'm so sorry and that's terrible. I guess it's mixed feelings because it's nice to finally have answers, but sucks that you have an autoimmune disease.

Henry walked past while I was watching this video and was like, "but it's never Lupus" (referencing House lol)

A big hug to you. So glad you have answers…and a treatment plan. My mother has lupus on the skin - and only the skin. Autoimmune diseases are soooo difficult. Take care of yourself!!

I'm so glad you found some answers! It is always such a relief to hear when people actually have good experiences at the doctors and feel listened to. My mom has a different autoimmune disorder that is also greatly affected by heat. The sun always drains her energy levels. Hopefully your medication and sun precautions keep you from having flare ups.

You are talking about (describing) ME 100%!!!! Including trying & excusing the Vit D, hair loss, winter, major fatigue, neck, shoulder, joint stiffness/pain, even the rash on my face I chalked it up to my blood pressure spiking or me becoming "upset" because that explains the heart palpitations too. Craving salt to where I'll eat a whole (big) bag of pretzels. I am SO DONE with this! SO READY to be WELL & FUNCTIONING! Thank you for this video! I'm calling my provider tomorrow morning!

Wish you the best sweetheart, happy you know now what it is. When I got my Hashimoto's diagnosis, the knowing alone made me feel so much better. The two years leading up to it, I felt defeated and crazy. Sending you love ❤

Hello.

I have been diagnosed with SLE last week and it feels devastating. Thank you for your video.

It took almost ten years if not even longer for me to get a diagnose.
Last years I had positive ANA but nobody really explained it and till that point the excluded severe rheumatoid stuff.
Last year I moved and the new rheumatologist found the dnsANA and in combination with my symptoms it is Lupus. It all also makes sense now. But I have been to so many doctors and often been ignored or it was brushed off.

Fortunately my organs are still ok and I have joint pain and fatigue and the feeling of a flu that you describe.

The doctor was a not so empathetic. Even when he only had the idea of SLE he already told me a lot of stories about horrible things that can happen with this disease and some patient stories and bad things he experienced. This was very discouraging.

I am now collecting information about SLE and treatment.

I am happy I now know what it is but I am also unsure how to deal with it. Because my whole life I had health issues and a lot of trauma and really wished for things to get better.

It is interesting - I also have a part in me who hopes the the rheumatologist is calling and says - you don’t have it. And the salt craving is here too😂.

Thank you for your positivity and I wish you all the best for your health journey.

Thank you so much for sharing Tara. I've been watching you for ages from here in Northern Ireland. Your videos feel like having a chat with a friend. I'm an art therapist living with multiple chronic illnesses and supporting people with the emotional/psychological side of having chronic health conditions. It is so relatable to hear you speak about the experience of diagnosis and everything you went through before. So many of us watching can totally relate. I am so glad you have answers now and some of those puzzle pieces have come together.  I hope you continue to feel better and better.

Oh my gosh Tara, wow! I’m sorry you have lupus but I’m so glad you finally found out what was going on and have started treatment. What a journey to get there, and it must be nice/relief to get answers!

Tara! While it is not an ideal diagnosis, it is good to finally have the answers.  Thank you for sharing this. This video may also help someone else find their own answers. Thinking of you! You've got this! Sending every SPF thought to you <3

Thanks so much for sharing! I recommend you get SPF clothing and hats so you can really protect your skin outside and avoid flare ups.

I have enjoyed your channel for about 2 years now, I’m based in the UK and also love dogs and sewing, gardening and cooking etc. We are around the same age and I have suffered from strange autoimmune symptoms for many years. I have never received any definitive diagnosis but have very similar symptoms to you. About 3 years ago I went Keto and after feeling better on that diet I decided to go one step further and try 30 days on the carnivore diet just beef, bacon (without nitrates) eggs and butter. The results were so incredible that I stayed on it but eventually added back a few more things. I have now been on it for 2 years. It has honestly been life changing and the inflammatory symptoms I had are mostly in remission except for when I have a cheat day and remind myself why I can’t eat ‘crap’ anymore. I thought it was nuts to even try it but I just can’t and won’t go back to a standard diet now or I get tired and terrible aching joints. One word of warning though is that once you try it and feel better, it’s really really hard to accept that you shouldn’t eat loads of foods that we all consider normal or even healthy, even certain veggies make me flare up and I miss baking cakes so much. It’s not for the faint hearted but it might make for an interesting experiment for your channel as well. Good luck 😊!

Wow what a shock that must've been, but I'm sure there was a sense of relief too. Kinda spooky you had predicted it 4 months ago  👀  I wish you only the best in navigating all of this  ❤

Hi! I’ve also had SO MANY SYMPTOMS since I was in my mid 20’s and for years all the blood tests came back normal to the point where I thought I was just crazy lol then recently my ANA came back positive although it was low. I finally went to Rheumatologist and they diagnosed me with UCTD but possibly lupus due to my kidney being a little weird. Like you, everything makes sense!!! I’m 37 now and can’t believe I’ve survived this long feeling like absolutely trash lol I’m looking forward to how the hydroxychloroquine will help. Hope you’re feeling better these days ❤

I wonder if your feelings toward food have changed because you know what's wrong and it's getting treated, so you're not existing in the same kind of psychological space anymore where you felt like you were running on fumes and there was no identified problem or interventions for that problem...I think being in that headspace is really hard, and it's hard to have full agency and not be in a kind of emotional survival mode, maybe valiantly trying to take good care of yourself (exercising, getting enough sleep, trying to eat well), but still needing to just get comfort from sweets as a coping mechanism. Now you know what's wrong, and I imagine that's really liberating you to have some more space to act with more intention.

Hi! Your video came up on my feed. Your story is similar to mine. I have Polymyalgia Rheumatica (PMR). I’m also on steroids for 6 months - almost done with my 4th month. Just wanted to say that Pilates has helped soooooo much. The joint and muscle pain I had made me lose all my strength in my back, abs and hips and now I’m so much stronger after starting Pilates. Also, clean eating feels like it’s making me feel better too. Just wanted to let you know what has been helping me. 😊

A lot of good information. Thank you for sharing and good luck with the process of understanding your diagnosis.

Whoa, Tara 😮 Holy Schnikeys, I’m sorry you have lupus but I’m so glad you finally found out what was going on and have started treatment (and yeah, that prednisone high is really something, enjoy it while it lasts, babe!) also, I haven’t seen you pop up on my feed in months and here we are. Missed you! And my daughter Amelia was watching with me and then right before you said it, she mentioned that if this was a House episode you would not have lupus😂 But he was wrong this time! Anyway, take it easy, treat yourself really well. Health is wealth and you are worth taking great care of. I’m so glad you listened and p your body and found a great PA to help steer you in the right direction ❤

Tara you funny...thanks for making me feel better

Sending positive healing energy 💞