{"id":1198,"date":"2014-05-29T01:08:03","date_gmt":"2014-05-29T01:08:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/?p=1198"},"modified":"2014-05-25T01:18:37","modified_gmt":"2014-05-25T01:18:37","slug":"living-lupus-summer-in-the-sun-not","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/2014\/05\/living-lupus-summer-in-the-sun-not.html","title":{"rendered":"Living Lupus: Summer in the Sun (Not!)"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Image<\/a>
Image courtesy of Pat138241\/FreeDigitalPhotos.net<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

One of the things that can be very damaging to lupus patients is something that many people are already enjoying to the hilt in the early summertime: Basking in the glow and warmth of the sun.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately for many of us lupies, the rays of the sun (UVB, UVA) can cause the disease to become active, triggering autoimmune responses in the skin and other, internal organs. \u00a0Individuals who have lupus should discuss sun exposure and its consequences with their doctors; each lupus patient is, after all, different. But here are some things that I do that have helped me “have a life” while taking precautions to avoid sun exposure:<\/p>\n

I’ve adapted many activities to indoors and hours when the sun is not high (or out). Museums, malls, and movie theaters are great places to enjoy with friends – and they’re indoors.<\/p>\n

Long sleeves, pants, and wide-brimmed hats are musts when I go outside during the day. I also wear strong sunglasses and sunblock.<\/p>\n

Friends and family members understand my need to avoid the sun, and are very accommodating, which is a blessing!<\/p>\n

Above all, I don’t dwell on what I cannot do and emphasize, instead, health and doing all that I can to prevent lupus from flaring horribly because of sun exposure.<\/p>\n

If you have lupus, I hope you’ll be able to work with your medical team and loved ones to find the summertime balance that’s healthful and right for you. Stay hopeful and you’ll shine! \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n

Blessings for the day,<\/p>\n

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

One of the things that can be very damaging to lupus patients is something that many people are already enjoying to the hilt in the early summertime: Basking in the glow and warmth of the sun. 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Unfortunately for many of us lupies, the rays of the sun (UVB, UVA) can cause the disease to become…\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/2014\/05\/living-lupus-summer-in-the-sun-not.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Good Days...Bad Days With Maureen Pratt\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2014-05-29T01:08:03+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2014-05-25T01:18:37+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/files\/2012\/10\/Mother-and-daughter-at-sunset-by-Pat138241-300x199.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"mpratt\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Living Lupus: Summer in the Sun (Not!) - Good Days...Bad Days With Maureen Pratt","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/2014\/05\/living-lupus-summer-in-the-sun-not.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Living Lupus: Summer in the Sun (Not!) - Good Days...Bad Days With Maureen Pratt","og_description":"One of the things that can be very damaging to lupus patients is something that many people are already enjoying to the hilt in the early summertime: Basking in the glow and warmth of the sun. 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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. Through the blog, she hopes to bring issues of health, wellness, and spirit into focus and, especially, inspire others that, no matter what health challenges, illness, or hardships they endure, each person can find a good way to realize the wonderful potential God has placed within each heart and soul.","sameAs":["http:\/\/www.maureenpratt.com"],"url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/author\/mpratt"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1198","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/548"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1198"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1198\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1199,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1198\/revisions\/1199"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1198"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1198"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1198"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}