Stories of Hope
Our stories, our struggles, and our triumphs in the fight against lupus. If you have shared your story, visit our Facebook page every Tuesday to see if your story was shared with our online community! The comments and support for each story are so inspiring.
Kimberly
Kimberly
I was diagnosed in August of 2008 with SLE. When I was diagnosed, with this autoimmune disease, my life took a dramatic change. I have suffered hair loss all over body, joint pain, heart disease, kidney failure, and rheumatoid arthritis. I am now eating right, exercising, and staying stress-free.
Cici
Cici
I was diagnosed with lupus in 2002. Got off meds in 2005 and my lupus remained dormant until last year - but it returned mad as hell. I've been to ER's and admitted into the hospital several times in 2019/2020. It finally came down to resigning from my job. Since 2019, I've been diagnosed with encephalitis, diabetes and possibly narcolepsy. Lupus just takes control; one day you're full of energy and the next day you can't even get out of bed! It's a weird autoimmune disease and I just continue to fight.
Chelsea
Chelsea
My name is Chelsea and I am blind. I have lupus (SLE). I was diagnosed in 2015, but I had symptoms since I was 13. I went to the doctor quite a few times and their answer to my problem was not lupus but juvenile arthritis and treated me as such. My mom has lupus and she kept pushing them to test me every year. They keep saying you have juvenile arthritis. In 2015 I got extremely ill so I decided to try testing for lupus again and was diagnosed.
Brenda
Brenda
I'm a 65 year old lupus patient who has had lupus since 1982. It took 3 months before the doctors could figure out what was wrong with me. Once they knew what I had, they told me that I needed to find a doctor who worked in that field. Over the years lupus has killed my kidneys and my son gave me a kidney in 2014. Lupus has given me gout, CHF, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Raynaurd's disease, Asthma, Sleep Apnea, A Fib, lupus induced high blood pressure and Paget's Bone disease.
Glenda
Glenda
I have suffered from SLE since 2005. It has affected my primarily my organ lungs. As a result, I have interstitial lung disease (ILD). I have been told that currently my only remedy is a lung transplant. I live in the Philippines where and lung transplants are not preformed. Still, I continue my fight and hope.
Nikiesha
Nikiesha
After living muscle and joint pain, fatigue and hair loss for several years, I was seen by a physician who detected something more. It’s been five years since my lupus diagnosis and I am empowered by opportunities presented in each new day. KFL provided me with information and resources that helped me to make sense of what I was experiencing. I have found my voice when consulting doctors, educating family/friends and most rewarding of all, supporting my fellow Warriors!
Rosalie
Rosalie
I was diagnosed with SLE in 2015 at the age of 39. It’s tough with all the doctor appointments , hospital stays and more bad days than good. I have a wonderful husband who has stuck through it all as I lost friends. I have learned to live my life to the fullest the best I can and stay positive to make people wonder how I do it. The advice I would give is take one day at a time and listen to your body because you know your self than everyone else. I may have Lupus but Lupus doesn’t have me.
Tina
Tina
I was 18 and giving birth at 28 weeks to my beautiful baby girl when I was diagnosed with SLE. I pushed and went blind and went in for an emergency c-section. After 41 spinal taps, a stroke from antiphosfolipid syndrome, VP shunt, LP shunt, and nerve sheeth surgery for psuedotumor cerebri, open heart surgery for mitral valve replacement due to heart failure, Lupus Nephritis class 5, and neuropsychiatric SLE I am still smiling and still fighting. My daughter is 20 yrs old now. And I can see!
Joanna
Joanna
My name is Joanna and I am 53 years old. I was diagnosed at the age of 26 years old with lupus. My doctor had no clue what to do! She sent me down the hall to the health center thinking they might have a pamphlet on lupus. It’s been a long road but now have a wonderful team of doctors. Here I am with my three miracles. Lupus effected me differently with each pregnancy. Nowadays, I am extremely anemic, mild kidney failure, and yucky pain that greets me in the mornings. Keep punching it!
Gellyn
Gellyn
I got diagnosed with SLE on 2016. I was going down from a hiking/camping trip with my sister when the butterfly rashes came out. I am coping well in my daily life but sometimes it's hard for me to tell people about Joint pains or Raynaud's as I'm seen as "healthy and fit". I saw a friend's post about Kaleidoscope Fighting Lupus, clicked on it and I found the page informative and it makes me feel that I am not alone in dealing with Lupus and there are people that understand and can relate to me.
Carla
Carla
YOU ARE NOT ALONE on your journey! THAT is how Kaleidoscope Fighting Lupus helped me feel and that’s also why I share my story! It’s a scary feeling to be diagnosed with a disease we know nothing about! Talking to others about how you’re feeling, what you go through, and what has helped you become a Lupus Warrior is the best therapy! After 5 yrs of living with daily ailments, I have found THE BEST natural supplements that focus on gut health! This has changed my quality of life, living with lupus!
Jaidee
Jaidee
I am 44 years old and lupus hits me 22 years ago. I am a nurse by profession. My job tells me to care for the sick, which meant when I became a patient I had to nurse myself. Perhaps, I considered myself a warrior. Battling lupus for this long made me a tougher person than I could ever imagine. Maybe my life has been wasted because of lupus but then I realized that everything happens for a reason. Lupus to me is a gift for it taught