I'm Famous! Well, my autoimmune disease is...

     So, I've been talking about this thing called Sjogren's  (pronounced Show-grins...does it make me grin? No!) for about 7 months. Recently, I explained that the disease is something that can look drastically different from patient to patient. The symptoms are vast and also vary in severity. No matter on which "level" Sjogren's affects a person, in a nutshell it's a pain and a major disruption to "normal" life.

     Yesterday, I had one of those days. My emotions were all over the place as I reflected on the "me I used to be". I used to be full of energy and be in excellent health. When I first met my husband I told him, "I never get sick.". Well, the irony in me saying that is almost laughable because a year later I got terribly ill. Thank God for him, though, because he has seen me through every bit of heartache and challenge that Sjogren's has poured into our lives. So, I basically sat around yesterday crying and feeling hopeless. Of course saying it like that makes me sound like a depressed piece of work, but it truly was a hard day for me. Being sick doesn't just affect the body. It reaches into your spirit as well. I allowed myself the time to grieve and this morning I woke up with a new sense of hope and determination.

     In the midst of my pity party last night I watched a documentary called Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead (that does sound like a film someone in my state of mind would watch, doesn't it?). The film basically explains the benefits of juicing and doing a juice cleanse. The man in the film has an autoimmune disease that became easier to manage without the use of medications once he began juicing fresh fruits and veggies. I was impressed. This morning, I got Matt on board with me in hopes that juicing will benefit him, too and put an end the the tummy issues he has had for years.

    Then, this afternoon I remembered that the tennis star--3 time Olympian--Venus Williams suffers from Sjogren's as well. I watched an interview with her and was filled with a bit of motivation. If Sjogren's can bring an all-star athlete to her knees at one point in time then maybe I don't have to be superwoman.

If you'd like to watch the interview here it is:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fsIfOLuCNRM

So, here's what's going to happen...

Matt and I will be doing a 10 day fast.

During the fast we will be drinking freshly juiced fruits & veggies--that's it. These drinks will be in place of meals. No food. No coffee. Nothing. Pretty simple.

I will document our journey each day (don't worry--the posts won't be this long). I will closely note any improvements/changes in my health.

     For those of you that have researched Sjogren's, you will know that it cannot be cured. I choose to look at it this way: if I can do ANYTHING to feel better then I will. Juicing won't solve the problem, but it may improve how I feel from day to day.  That is worth every bit of effort on my part.

Here we go...