I was just reading a newspaper article in
which they were talking about Polymorphous
Light Eruption (PMLE), when one gets a
red, itchy rash after being in the sun.
Then they said that if you have these
symptoms, you should also get checked out
to make sure you don't have a more serious
condition like lupus.
Usually when I sit in the sun for longer
than a few minutes, I get a red, itchy
rash on my arms and I feel VERY tired,
like I could go take a nap...it is like
the sun zaps all the energy out of me and
I feel drained (even after just half an
hour). I have been attributing the red
rashes to allergies and eczema (I had a
really bad case of eczema when I was 16,
and I also dry skin and all-year
allergies).
I also have aches and pains pretty much
every day, too, especially in my left
knee, neck, left elbow, hips/lower back,
and sometimes my legs (everything seems to
be concentrated on the left side). Some
side notes that may be of interest: I
injured my left knee while dancing 3 years
ago, and it had never seemed to fully
heal; I got tendonitis in my left
wrist/elbow/arm 4 years ago, again from a
dance injury, and it seems to flare up
still; I had severe scoliosis and had
posterior spinal fusion when I was 13, and
I see a chiropractor 1 to 2 times a month
to have my neck and lower back adjusted.
Especially when it rains, my joints and
bones seem to get achy, as if I have
arthritis (both of my grandmothers
have/had arthritis, so my family has a
history of it).
A couple weeks ago, I felt like I could
not get enough sleep. I took a nap on
Sunday from 6-8:45 pm, woke up, and was
back in bed for the night at 9:30. I
slept till 8:15 on Monday morning, took a
nap from 11:15-12:15, took another nap
from about 8:30-9:30, and was in bed by
10:15 and slept for 13 hours Monday night.
I felt like I was really craving sleep.
I have also had these sores in my nose
(left nostril, on the right side; right
nostril, on the left side) for over 2
weeks, and they don't seem to go away.
I've tried using Vaseline and sleeping
with a humidifier, and as soon as they
seem to be going away, they come back
again. They are painful and dry, and my
mom briefly looked in my nose and said it
was red in the spot I pointed out.
I have no idea if all these symptoms are
connected, and I don't have other lupus
symptoms such as unexplained fever, rash
on my face (I do have chronic acne), chest
pain, or protein in my urine (as far as I
know).
I would appreciate any comments anyone
might have, especially from those that
have lupus and know exactly what it's
like.
