When I was seven years old, I was diagnosed with the auto immune disease Lupus. My specific type of Lupus, systemic lupus erythematosus or SLE, is severe. My immune system attacks my healthy organs and tries to destroy them. To combat my disease and its symptoms, I have had countless blood tests, take many medications, and I’ve have quite a few kidney biopsies, and other procedures. However instead of allowing it to be constant source of distress, I channel my feelings into a motivating force. Fighting Lupus inspires me as I achieve my goals and realize my dreams in every aspect of my life. All through elementary school I pushed myself to prove that this disease was not going to stop me from achieving my academic goals. During the eighth grade my perseverance was tested when I received a medication that prohibited me from attending my classes, so I was to be home-schooled. Through dedication to my studies, I completed some a month earlier than my peers. I realized I had the work ethic to enroll in honors and advanced placement classes in high school. Throughout my years in high school I have had some ups and downs, but never have I let that hinder my academic excellence. I have taken advance placement English and Latin, and honor math courses all of which have showed me that I can succeed at any level. My first two years of high school I had enrolled in computer science courses, which I thought was going to be a typing class. Although there were some typing tests, the course was primarily to teach students how to create a variety of documents and how to perform proper research. I believed that I knew quite a bit about computers, but this course was going to expand my knowledge to lengths I did not expect. In these courses ... ... middle of paper ... ...ine courses once again proved to work in my favor, last semester I was awarded Dean’s List. With everything I have been through since I was diagnosed with Lupus, I feel as though I have exceeded my expectations for myself. I never let my condition negatively influence who I am or what I want to become in life. Yes, I have had more doctor visits than most people, but I am also blessed to be surrounded by people, family and physicians alike, with positive energy who encourage me to be resilient. After obtaining my bachelor’s degree, I plan to continue my education for a master’s in computer sciences with a specialization in visualization. I am grateful for the experiences I have had in my life, both good and bad, as they have shaped my character. Lupus will remain a part of my life forever, and just how it has not hindered me in the past, it will not dull my future.
Central idea: Lupus is a disease of unpredictability and the mystery that it carries is the vast number of characteristics of the disease. My job today is to inform you on this “cruel mystery” and how it affects people.
Lupus is mainly caused by a combination of genetic predisposition and environmental triggers. According to Magro et al., genes, environment, and genetic factors cause lupus (2013). The most affected by this condition are women compared to men. In addition, lupus affects people aged between 20- 40, although, children are said to rarely get lupus. Initially, a person diagnosed with lupus was said to die because there was no treatment. However, with the advancement in treatment and prevention methods, people with lupus can live normal lives. With proper treatment of lupus, the condition can be managed and the affected organs protected from severe damages.
Systemic lupus erythematosus, or simply lupus is a chronic autoimmune disease or immune system malfunction. A person's immune system normally protects the person from viruses, bacteria and other foreign materials. When a person has an autoimmune diseases like lupus, the immune system turns against itself and attacks itself.
“But you don't look sick.”. “If you just exercised more you would feel better.” , “It's all in your head.” , “You are just being lazy.”. These phrases are just a hand full of unkind things that people have said to me, simply because they do not understand my disease. Who could blame them? Doctors do not understand it. Researchers do not understand it. My parents do not understand it. My boyfriend does not understand it. Even I cannot understand it. I have Lupus. It is an unresolved disease that millions of people suffer with. Though there are numerous people diagnosed with lupus, there are very few people who know what it is, and how it impacts us from the time we wake up, to when we finally escape our pain with sleep. In this essay, I will explain what we know about lupus, what the symptoms are, and what kind of treatments are accessible for lupus.
DO you know what Lupus is? Or do you know anyone with Lupus? You’ll be surprised to know that over 1.5 million people are affected by Lupus and of every 170 people 9 out of 10 of them are women. Even though that Lupus can be dated back to the Greek physician Hippocrates many people are still blind to this disease. Lupus can affect you, your love ones and the people around you because, like many other autoimmune diseases Lupus does not discriminate. I’m surprised that not many people know what Lupus is, especially when someone is diagnosed with lupus every 30 minutes. When I was diagnosed I was relieved to finally know I was not going crazy and there was actually something wrong, but at the same time scared out of my mind because there is no cure. (Rupavate, 2014)
However, I picked myself up and by the help of others, I promised myself that I will overcome this illness and become the successful person I want to be. I am not going to ignore my problem but I am gonna fight it, as in the story from Into Thin Air stated the author, “I sat down to marshall my energy” (Krakauer 224). And that exactly what I did.Even if i did miss days, I still managed to pass all my classes i wasn't going to give up that easy. Some of the sacrifices i've made was to cut off some time of watching television, hanging out late at night with my family. Making sacrifices is a huge step to receiving what it is a person really wants and it is also a huge step of growing up. I am ready to become an adult in this world and i won't try to be successful i will be successful. “ I want to get this thing done and out of my life…” (Krakauer 226). I use this example from the story because it's exactly how i feel about this condition, I want to overcome
My motivations in life have always been centered on my desire to maintain independence and happiness. My passions for physical therapy and health originated from those same motivations. Throughout my childhood, I repeatedly found myself in tough situations that required a level of self -dependency and perseverance that I don’t believe many young minds possess. My parents’ divorce put my life on a trajectory that could have easily been destructive. As a young girl, I realized that despite the lack of control I felt in my hardships growing up, I had control over my academic and future successes. I vowed that I would remember the struggles I faced and concentrate my energy on creating a better life for myself. To this day, it is important to me
My transition to college was successful, but it was nonetheless one of the most stressful times in my life. Unlike many of my peers at Saint Louis University, my rural high school experience did not truly prepare me for the academic rigors of college. Despite extensive preparation, I performed rather poorly on the first round of exams. While I didn’t fail any particular exam, my performance was seriously lacking. I knew that getting C’s on exams would not serve me well in the pursuit of my dream of becoming a physician. I remember feeling, for the first time in my life, that I was unintelligent and incompetent. I was also heavily fatigued from the excessive hours of studying, which I felt were necessary to reconcile the problem. I managed to
My perseverance has prepared me for a career in medicine. The path towards becoming a physician can be long and challenging, necessitating the ability to endure. My ability to bounce back from setbacks and mistakes has solidified throughout my journey. One of the cornerstone experiences of my personal development occurred during high school. My determination led to me my graduating as valedictorian of my class, while balancing three varsity sports and several extracurricular activities. In addition, I worked on weekends to help support my family financially. This persistence resulted in scholarship awards that made higher education a possibility.
For example, it did not hit me until my junior year that I needed to get my grades together. All of my close friends were being admitted into National Honor Society and I was left out. It made me feel dimwitted, as if I was frowned upon. “This is it,” I remember thinking to myself, “I am going to do better and do my absolute best.” I started with putting school first. Hanging out with friends and everything else became a privilege and reward for every good grade I made. Let me tell you, it is not easy. My auditory processing disorder has also prevented me from hearing important things that are helpful to my learning ability. I learned that I need to move myself to front of the classroom and focus. I have given it my all, this past year and my
I had a difficult time learning in school. I became a few years behind my grade level and my parents considered having me repeat a grade. My learning support teacher worked with me one on one for months and taught me how to study and work hard. I continued working hard and started getting better grades, and soon I became top of my class. I kept studying and strived to get the best possible grades throughout middle school and high school. I looked to challenge myself and took advanced placement classes. I don’t think I would have worked hard in high school, if I had not struggled earlier on, I would most likely be on a completely different life
I couldn’t participate in sports anymore and had to spend three days a week for six months at physical therapy. I hated every second of it for the first few weeks and would beg my parents to not make me go. I eventually got used to it and during my time there, I gained a love for it. Despite how miserable I was and how much I hated doing the stretches and exercises, I noticed my body slowly but surely starting to heal. It was amazing to see all of my hard work pay off. I could do all of the things I did before my injury and I had never felt better! I decided then and there that I wanted to spend my life helping people recover from their injuries and diseases. I knew that it wouldn’t be easy, but that it would definitely be worth it. Since then, I have been working to achieve my goal of becoming a physical
This is my perspective input on a disease that is trying to ruin my life. With the aid of my doctors and the love from the most important people in my life...I will always have, "D.A.T.T.FAMILY SUPPORT".
I was sometimes slower at completing a written paper or an assignment. In open discussions about material we had just read, things weren’t sticking with me after reading to feel confident to raise my hand and be active with discussions. I would have to search for answers in my memory for some time. Sometimes answers just weren’t retrieved at all. I became frustrated in school often, and eventually developed a negative attitude toward school. I struggled a lot with this because I knew I could do better. Every day I prepared myself for failure because I lacked the tools and strategies that I needed to succeed in school. Granted, I got by, but I could have been a much better student. I earned low B’s and C’s, but should have been A’s.
School began interesting for me my last year of high school. School was always important to me, but I never had a passion for it. However, I always put myself in a position to find a passion for school. I never skipped class, I never talked back, and I did my best to stay engaged in every class at all times. A desire to succeed in school did not happen until my final year of high school. I made it my mission to do well in school even if I had not found a passion for school. With my Dyslexia and my ADD, I have always struggled in school, and still struggle in school. I did not discover my Dyslexia and ADD until I was in the 10th grade. The doctor said I relied on my intelligence to create other ways to find the answer which masked my disabilities.