It's Been One Lupie Existence

It was a year ago today that I began writing publically about the loopiness that has become my life as a result of a not-so-humourous, not-so-little, very serious disease called Lupus. I remember sitting up in bed, propped up with a multitude of pillows with my laptop, and reading Christine Miserandino's The Spoon Theory for the very first time. Then I watched her video on YouTube, and as I watched the pictures from her life flash across the screen and, in particular, the one of her propped up by a multitude of pillows in bed with a laptop, caused me to exclaim out loud, "Oh my goodness, that's me!" And from that time, I knew I had to find others who suffered as I did, and read their stories to see if I could find other simple similarities that would help me to realize that what I was dealing with was in fact real and not experienced by myself and my mother only. And I found an entire community of people who suffer not so silently when they have the understanding of like-minded and similarly suffering people to confide in.

I came across those who were blogging about their lives and I thought, "Well if they can do it, so can I!" So I did and A Lupie Existence was born! Now because I tend to have an all-or-nothing type of personality, I not only created a new blog, but a Facebook page, a Twitter account, a Tumblr account and even adjusted my old MySpace account and YouTube page to the Lupie cause! It gave me something to do with the seemingly endless hours of time I all of a sudden had on my hands and I welcomed this new experience, the new people it brought into my life, and the new sense of usefulness.

So, in one year of documenting my life what have I learned? Well, I hadn't planned on learning anything, but I did. I learned that with the aid of Jehovah God's holy spirit, the love and support of my family and friends, and the stubborness I battle deep within myself, I am stronger today than I have ever been; no matter the weaknesses in my physical body! I have learned that I can withstand disease, abandonment, harsh critism and the uneducated judgement of some and still maintain a genuine smile on my face and laughter in my mouth!

I have come to realize from getting the chance to get to know some really wonderfully kind and supportive people, that I and my dear mother are not alone in fighting the battle of auto-immune disorders. If you are reading this and you battle ill health of any kind I hope that the experiences, some of my deepest held feelings, and the loopy stories I have laid out in this blog can help you in some small way; if only to put a smile on your face but for a moment.

I believe that today IS a gift and while for me, and millions of others, it is a Lupie existence, its one I've chosen to live thankfully!

Thanks for reading!