Sunday, November 29, 2009

Stress Makes Autoimmune Diseases Worse? Big Surprise There -- Not!

Thanks to my friend, @hyperchondria, I discovered an advocacy group I hadn't come across before: The American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association (AARDA).

I was browsing the AARDA website and came across a bullet item on its facts page that made me roll my eyes and chuckle: "Studies have shown that patients who understand their illnesses follow their treatment plans better than patients who are uninformed about their illnesses. Also, they experience less stress, which is a known contributor to worsening autoimmune diseases."

Because of course I'm uninformed about my illness(es) since I still don't have a solid diagnosis. And having a mystery illness definitely contributes to my stress levels, and isn't it just unfair that stress can contribute to worsening of my illness? 


It just makes me laugh, but not in a positive way if you know what I mean.

Anyway, I plan to try to contact them in the next few weeks. They have a patient education person who apparently can give referrals and I figure they might be able to help me (and my doctors) figure out what's going on with my body. Or something. 




1 comment:

Elizabeth McClung said...

Thank you for the link, and the quote. Having a mystery illness sucks like being a pinball where everyone gets to bounce you from this specialist to that and do whatever tests and no one says, "We haven't a clue, any idea?" to you. Hang in there, and take a few breaks now and then from the medico world - I'm rooting for you!