Having an autoimmune disease is not easy. While the experience is different for everyone, it is something that will definitely change your everyday life. Listen to your body, because it will tell you what you need to hear and that something is wrong, when something is wrong.
This is from someone who does have multiple autoimmune diseases.
Actress Erin Moriarty shared that she has recently been diagnosed with an autoimmune disease: Graves Disease. If you aren’t familiar with the disease, it is an “autoimmune disorder where the immune system mistakenly attacks the thyroid gland, causing it to produce too much thyroid hormone, a condition known as hyperthyroidism.”
The actor took to Instagram and announced her diagnosis, writing, “Autoimmune disease manifests differently in everybody/every body. Your experience will be different from mine. My experience will be different from yours. Perhaps greatly, perhaps minutely. One thing I can say: if I hadn’t chalked it all up to stress and fatigue, I would’ve caught this sooner. A month ago, I was diagnosed with Graves’ disease. Within 24 hours of beginning treatment, I felt the light coming back on. It’s been increasing in strength ever since. If yours is dimming, even slightly, go get checked. Don’t “suck it up” and transcend suffering; you deserve to be comfy. Shit’s hard enough as is.”
There are a lot of different symptoms for the disease, some including, “a slight tremor of the hands or fingers, heat sensitivity, weight loss, an enlarged thyroid gland, bulging eyes, thick, red skin on the shins or feet, menstrual cycle changes, problems getting an erection, low sex drive, and fast or irregular heartbeat, among other symptoms.”
Her post isn’t able to be embedded, but the carousel does show a lot of pictures from behind the scenes of her life. Erin also posted pics of her talking to her parents about how she feels and has felt.
In one heartbreaking text, she wrote, “I’m serious; I really really need relief. I feel nauseated tonight. I feel so sh– and removed from who I am, I can’t live like this forever. Or that long. There aren’t moments anymore, not even a passing 5 seconds, when I feel normal. I’ve never had that. Not one. It’s not just fatigue – it’s an ineffable, system wide cry for help and I don’t know how long I can remain in this state.”
In a later post, she wrote, “I already feel a world of a difference, primary thought (as of now): ‘damn, this is how I’m supposed to feel? I’ve been missing out!'”
We’re sending her healing vibes.
