more money to go into the pockets
of people who have this disease so
they can take care of themselves
and relieve the pressure of having
the disease. Holistic ways of
teaching people how to live longer
because we also found that a lot of
people give up with all the issues.
Every aspect of their life suffers.
IPain. What was the time frame
from symptoms to diagnosis?
Z. Oh, I was in denial! I was experiencing
symptoms for about two
and a half years until the illnesses
fully manifested. I took them as
normal because I worked a lot. I
was a senior litigation paralegal
for 20 years, and at that time, I
was working in New York, working
at a law firm. I worked a lot. I
just assumed because I was sitting
at my computer for 12 hours that
my hands were cramping from the
typing, but in actuality, it was the
rheumatoid arthritis and lupus hitting
me. And then all of a sudden,
my hands and feet would go
numb, and I'm thinking, "Oh, it's
the air conditioning, cause it's cold
up in here, but it was actually the
Raynaud's. It was like that for two
and a half years, and then when it
manifested itself, I woke up and
couldn't move. My hands and feet
26—iPain Living Magazine
were literally three times their
size, and that's when I had to be
rushed to the hospital.
IPain. What approaches did you
take for treatment? Are there any
treatments that help you control
the pain and other symptoms?
Z. I had just gotten over a major
flare-up and got pregnant. I have
such a high tolerance. I think it's
because I want to live so bad yet I
deal with the pain through staying
busy until I can't. What I've
learned to do over the last ten
years with my pain management is
to deal with it when it comes
and accept it. I like to hide it, and
now Tichina knows me so well
with it that she'll tell me, "Yeah,
you're flaring up, it's time to shut
down." I also do a lot of alternative
treatments for myself. Like,
today, I went to the acupuncturist.
I go twice a week, and that is absolutely
helpful in relieving my
pain and swelling. I also take a lot
of herbs along with my Western
medicine.
IPain. What techniques do you
use to encourage and support your
family members living with lupus
and other chronic care diseases?
T. I tell on Zenay. So, when she's
going through an episode, I'm a lot
kinder. I've trained myself to look
out for her, and I move really, really
fast. When Zenay first got Lupus
and Rheumatoid Arthritis, I
took it seriously but didn't really
see it until I started seeing it. I’m a
lot more patient, I'm a lot more
thoughtful, and I cater to her more
so than I would anyone else. I can
see when she's going through it,
and I literally change my pace.
Now I've learned to be very deliberate.
People don't understand people
suffering with lupus is not only
about the pain in their body but
the mental pain--the worst ever.
I"m always cognizant of the mental
pain the lupus sufferer goes
through as well. My daddy used to
say, "Thank God for your mind."
It's true, your brain is the smartest
and strongest muscle in your
body, and I always want to feed
her brain so her brain can talk to
her body and tell it what it needs
to do during times she needs it to
function better.
IPain. Lupus affects you mentally,
spiritually, and physically. Did
you receive help for the mental
and spiritual aspects or were they
pushed down on the list of importance
by your medical provider
(s)?
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