Lupus Detention House !link! Link

We didn't commit a crime. We didn't choose this holding cell. But as long as we are stuck here, we might as well be the loudest, most obnoxious inmates on the block.

So, I am locked inside. The warden is my immune system. The crime? Simply existing. In a traditional detention center, you know the rules. Don't fight. Don't run. Do your time. In the Lupus Detention House, the rules change by the hour. lupus detention house

For the uninitiated, Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease. In plain English: my immune system, the very guard dog meant to protect me from intruders (viruses, bacteria, infections), has gone rogue. It can no longer tell the difference between a foreign invader and my own tissue. We didn't commit a crime

Yesterday, I was granted "yard time"—I went for a 20-minute walk in the sun. Today, because of photosensitivity, the sun is the enemy. The fluorescent lights in the grocery store trigger a migraine. The meal they serve (a delicious, healthy salad) contains alfalfa sprouts, which can trigger a flare. So, I am locked inside

When you look healthy on the outside, but your kidneys are staging a revolt on the inside, people don't see a prisoner. They see someone who "doesn't look sick." They see a lazy person who cancels plans. They see a flake.