Monday, September 8, 2008

Invisible Illness: educating yourself (and the doctor!)

One thing I've learned since living with a chronic illness is the need to educate first yourself and second your doctor.  Many of these diseases are rare and doctors are inexperienced with them.  I think most of us would say that we read all we can about our illnesses.  Here are some auto-immune related items that I've found helpful or interesting.



The Autoimmune Epidemic:  Bodies Gone Haywire in a World Out of Balance--and the Cutting-Edge Science that Promises Hope by Donna Jackson Nakazawa.

What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Autoimmune Disorders:  The Revolutionary, Drug-Free Treatments for Thyroid Disease, Lupus, MS, IBD, Chronic Fatigue, Rheumatoid Arthritis, and other Diseases by Stephen B. Edelson and Deborah Mitchell.

Here is an interesting video, mostly concerning MS and childhood diabetes, that does a great job of explaining how autoimmune diseases (in general) work.  It is 45 minutes in length, but very informative.  He discusses some experimental treatments that really offer some very promising hope.  I recommend those who do not have MS or childhood diabetes to also watch this, as he mentions many other T-cell autoimmune diseases, such as Rheumatoid Arthritis, Crohn's, Ulcerative Colitis, etc.

Have you read an interesting book or found something on the Internet?  Leave a comment.



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