Hi, I’m Alex and this is my story. I’ve struggled with autoimmune diseases for a while, being diagnosed with both Celiac and lupus.

What is Lupus? Let’s start there. According to the Lupus Foundation of America, “Lupus is a long-term disease that can cause inflammation and pain in any part of your body.” Like other autoimmune diseases, it occurs when your body is unable to regulate your immune response. But I like to think of it in other ways. For me, lupus is what happens when I’ve been doing homework for hours in my room and my body starts to ache. Lupus is the butterfly rash or the stress response I have or the muscle pain I feel at random times.

And then there’s Celiac. When I first received the diagnosis, it felt like getting a new project assigned on top of the homework I was already behind on, LOL. Suddenly, my world revolved around gluten-free options, deciphering food labels like reading cryptic messages, and always feeling like I’m on a different dietary planet than most people.

But if I can manage it, anyone can. My advice is these three things: 1) take the advice of your medical professionals! 2) Although you should listen to friends/family, ultimately you know your body best, and you should listen to its limits. 3) It might seem annoying to try to stay healthy now, but your body will thank you for it later so never feel like “Just this once won’t hurt.”

— Alex, California, USA