{"id":1180,"date":"2014-05-16T18:02:26","date_gmt":"2014-05-16T18:02:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/?p=1180"},"modified":"2014-05-12T18:19:43","modified_gmt":"2014-05-12T18:19:43","slug":"lupus-awareness-day-putting-on-the-purple","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/2014\/05\/lupus-awareness-day-putting-on-the-purple.html","title":{"rendered":"Lupus Awareness Day – Putting on the Purple"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Image<\/a>
Image courtesy of foto76\/FreeDigitalPhotos.net<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Lent is over. Advent is a long while away. But, today, I’m going to wear purposeful purple!<\/p>\n

May is Lupus Awareness Month, and today is Lupus Awareness Day, and the color is purple.<\/p>\n

Purple is a deep color, sometimes mysteriously so, and lupus is the quintessentially mysterious disease – there’s no cure, there are not many treatments and no one “lupus test,” and there’s no telling when or in which organ it might flare up. \u00a0Living with lupus is like living with something completely life disrupting just around the corner and, sometimes, front and center for a long time.<\/p>\n

When I was first diagnosed, I was told that it usually takes 3 full years before the newly diagnosed patient has an awareness of what the disease will mean to his or her ongoing life. It’s no wonder, then, that it’s hard for those who don’t have lupus to fully understand the weight of the illness, and the burden upon physical and emotional strength it sometimes poses. For people with a “known” illness, we lupies are certainly unique.\u00a0We don’t look sick. We can’t be easily “classified,” when it comes to treatments, symptoms, or even prognosis (each lupus patient is completely different). \u00a0We might seem like hermits, avoiding the sun, crowds, and sometimes the most mundane of activities due to fatigue. \u00a0And, if we are to be fully helpful to our medical team, we have to acquire knowledge surpassing “what is the common cold,” and stay on top of things we never dreamed we’d have to be familiar with.<\/p>\n

Today, we put on purple, together and individually, to raise awareness that, at least, lupus “is,” and we are still living and fighting. If you have lupus, I’m right there with you and cheering you on. And if you don’t have lupus, I want to thank you for reading this, learning, and supporting those of us in the trenches. It’s so very important that we know we’re not alone, and with your encouragement and God’s grace, we’ll move ahead and onward to the next Lupus Awareness Day and beyond!
\nBlessing for the day,<\/p>\n

Maureen<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Lent is over. Advent is a long while away. But, today, I’m going to wear purposeful purple! May is Lupus Awareness Month, and today is Lupus Awareness Day, and the color is purple. 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Advent is a long while away. But, today, I’m going to wear purposeful purple! May is Lupus Awareness Month, and today is Lupus Awareness Day, and the color is purple. 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She expected to be writing scripts. God had other plans. A few years after her graduation, Maureen was diagnosed with a life-threatening case of organ-involved lupus. Her life turned upside down as she grappled with the effects of the illness and other health conditions that ensued. She was no stranger to serious health challenges; even as a child, Maureen had survived numerous bouts of pneumonia, flu, and other infections. But lupus made her take a fresh look at her life goals - and took herlifelong, strong Catholic Christian faith and writing in a direction she'd never imagined. Today, Maureen writes and speaks about walking with the Lord while living with chronic pain and illness. Her most recent book is \"Don't Panic!: How to Keep Going When the Going Gets Tough (Franciscan Media). She is also the author of, \"Peace in the Storm: Meditations on Chronic Pain & Illness\" (Image Books\/Randomhouse), \"Beyond Pain: Job, Jesus, and Joy\" (Twenty-Third Publications), \"The First Year: Hypothyroidism, Second Edition\" (Perseus) and \"Taking Charge of Lupus: How to Manage the Disease and Make the Most of Your LIfe.\" She writes the syndicated column, \"Living Well,\" for Catholic News Service, and has also written for Saint Anthony Messenger Magazine, Journey for Women Magazine, The Upper Room Magazine, LupusNow, and Arthritis Today. Maureen's health continues to be a challenge, however she feels honored to be able to bring her perspective, from experience and knowledge, to others. \"Good Days...Bad Days with Maureen Pratt\" is a new way for Maureen to reach people who carry the burden of illness and pain in their lives, or who care for someone who does. 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