Sarah Nigbor

I need to get my body and my FOMO under control.

What is FOMO you might ask? According to Wikipedia, “Fear of missing out is the feeling of apprehension that one is either not in the know about or missing out on information, events, experiences, or life decisions that could make one's life better.” Yes, I’ve had a serious case of this for the past two weeks, along with a tough case of pneumonia. I haven’t been able to go anywhere or do much of anything except type, so I feel like I’ve missed out on a lot: Prescott Daze! Art on the Kinni! Football games! Ugh, the list is long.

Autoimmune issues are an invisible, nasty thing and I never knew how challenging fighting them would be.

I've been on Humira, which is a medication that suppresses the immune system, in an effort to stop my inflammation issues from flaring up, such as shingles, arthritis in my hips, feet and back, iritis, flu-like systems, fatigue, etc. Eating foods and taking vitamins that fight inflammation certainly helps, as does exercise and self-care, which I have actively been taking part in. Unfortunately, that hasn't been enough to prevent the flare-ups, which can cause long-term damage to my organs, spine and eyesight. So my rheumatologist has me on Humira.

But being on Humira, I am susceptible to infection, which is probably how a simple cold turned into pneumonia. I can't be on Humira right now because it makes the antibiotics not work to clear the pneumonia, So it's a double-edged sword: the medicine that is supposed to stop my inflammation can also make me sick. That’s a conundrum.

For almost two weeks I’ve been sequestered in my house, some days too sick to really even move. I couldn’t breathe without sounding like a chainsaw. I couldn’t talk, which I think Hubby secretly enjoyed. My dog was worried and became my constant fur blanket, which was a great to combat the chills. It’s taken three rounds of antibiotics and steroids to knock the pneumonia loose from my lungs even a smidgen, and last week they were threatening to put me on IV treatments in the hospital. Thank God it didn’t come to that.

None of this is shared for pity; it's for education. I feel blessed that I have a wonderful medical team, family, employers and friends who help me every day. There are many who fight autoimmune issues, and they truly are warriors. They don’t look sick, but sometimes getting out of bed takes superhuman effort.  

I also find everything I'm learning fascinating, because it explains so much that has not only happened to me over the years medically, but to family members such as my mother and grandpa. I have autoimmune disease on both sides of the family (double whammy), but the strides the medical community makes each day toward understanding these invisible nightmares is truly astounding.

Thanks for being with me readers, because you give me hope that tomorrow will be better. And let’s hope I can finally get out of the house! No more FOMO!