Coping Tools and Tips

Heya! There’s so many things to love, that I thought why not write a list? I hope this list inspires you to write a list of your own, to remember that there’s always silver lining in dark clouds. Hubby / Love of my LifeWatching a movie – funny, loving and upbeatReading a book – again,…

NO Sleep Another 4am wake up, I woke up this morning fully awake. This is one of the worst side effects of Prednisone. I’m still on 50mg, one more week and then 40mg 2 weeks,30mg 2 weeks, 20mg 2 weeks and even slower then. The awful thing about Prednisone it keeps you up all night….

So here I am, a 30 year old, I’ve had one major stroke so far, it’s over right? I travel to the Philippines with friends of family – only to feel so tired most of the time I sleep. Unusual. Yes?! I get back to Australia, have my usual MRA done and the doc tells…

8 years before I had a bilateral pontine ischemic stroke I had migraines for 8 years. Repeat – eight! As you can imagine, I had bouts of insomnia and nights where sleep became very hard to come by. Here’s a list of 5 natural ways to get to sleep – and stay asleep! The Calm…

Welcome to my blog, Autoimmunee. This blog is a collection of short stories, tips, experiences (mine and others) and everything in between.  Are you an Autoimmunee? You don’t have to have an autoimmune disease to be one. You can also be someone who cares for someone who has one; be studying immunology or autoimmune diseases;…

Author’s Note: This is the third story written from a series of short stories called “Outside”. Which you can read more here. This story is fictional but I can relate to my character when some in their 70s try to compare the experience with mine, it’s not the same.   Staying up to watch the sunrise “When…

Author’s Note: This is the second story written from a series of short stories called “Outside”. Which you can read more here. This story is fictional but obviously a fear very real to me. I am not afraid of dying so much as the heartache and pain inflicted on others due to my own wishes….

“Winter is coming!” if you’re a GoT fan, this may mean a little more to you, but even if you’re not, I’m quite serious – winter is coming and if you’re like me, your joints are already letting you know it’s starting to get colder. Having an autoimmune disease winter is usually an interesting time,…

Edited by Gisella Butler-Colot Preface Short stories are made to make you think. There might be no resolution, an ambiguous ending. But isn’t life like that? Try as we may, we try our best to give ourselves our own resolutions in life. But maybe by looking back on those details we see the answers to…

*Eeeks* I think I have the death grip on my husband’s hands. “Don’t look,” he says. I may have brown skin, but if you were to see me I’m sure I’d look deathly pale. “You’ve got tiny veins,” says the lady. She swaps to the other arm. There are 3 tiny holes now on my…

I’ve been in and out of the hospital more times than I can count on both hands. With each experience, I’ve gained so much knowledge not only about my autoimmune condition but also about myself. In this post, read on for some tips about how to make you next in-patient hospital experience more comfy. Quick…

I am a true believer in that having a positive attitude changes the whole course of having an autoimmune condition.

Here’s my hospital bag checklist that I use to make sure I don’t forget anything when I’m packing ahead of time: Audio Books There are hundreds of audiobooks available online and at your local stores, heaps are free too. I remember sitting in the hospital and listening to the television, there’s so much you miss…

I wanted to share with everyone today my new fav health product called “Metamucil”. In case you’re wondering, I make no money from telling you how awesome it is, I just love to share this product because it has helped me so much. I’m not sure if it’s available in your country wherever you may…

Today I wanted to share with everyone this fantastic video I came across on YouTube. It’s all about posture and how we can change our bodies to increase health and decrease pain-related issues in our bodies. The exercises or techniques are really interesting and challenge the way we think of what the correct posture really…

One of the most helpful tools for your doctor and yourself during your appointments is keeping a pain diary and symptom tracker or log. This way you can pinpoint exactly the time and date of when an autoimmune disease flare-up occurred, monitor, what you were doing each time and have a better understanding of what…

I look in the mirror and first see the blotches on my skin. They’re red, raised, they look horrible. Putting on powder doesn’t help. Now they just look dusty, that’s the best word I can think of now. I look closer, my knees are bulging. Little blue veins and white lines surround my knees. It’s…

It must cold and flu season here or everyone’s body has gotten a bite of the “sheep” mentality and started copying each other lol. The reason I say this, as there’s only distinct seasons here in The Philippines, wet and dry season, but pretty much the temp is always warm so you can’t really pinpoint…

Flexibility – is it only for those elite few or can the rest of us “not as fit” people mould our bodies to become more flexible? Now if you’re reading this with a biological point of view, you will answer of course you can, you just need to train your body. But that is a…

This blog is dedicated to the people with autoimmune conditions and the people that love them. It aims to educate both parties on how we can both work through these diseases together. For family & friends, how they can care for and support their loved one diagnosed; and for the autoimmune patient themselves, how they…

Whether you’ve been diagnosed with a condition and attending regular appointments, or going through a string of appointments to get some answers, I hope you find this blog article helpful. Types of doctor’s appointments During my previous experiences, I’ve come across all different types of doctors, and I don’t just mean different like a neurologist…

I previously wrote my first blog entry called “The Invisible Visitor” and have gotten feedback that some of you would like to know more about the specific symptoms that PAN has. While it can manifest in many different ways in different people, there are some core distinctions that direct doctors to testing whether you have…