Ladies tend to get Lupus more often than men. This is not a biased opinion. Nor is it a feminist stance. It is a statistical fact. Pure and Simple. Statistics indicate that women are more likely to develop/ inherit/ contract or just…’get it’ more than their male counterparts. It sucks, indeed, but that is the truth of the matter, pure and simple. And, you know me. You have read enough of my writing, I hope, that you can see I’m doing some research into this topic. That I am not simply a person living with this disease. No, you should have (at least) an inkling that I spend a lot of my time looking into anatomy, medicine and current medical research. It feels to me that I have become more than a casual onlooker or patient in this disease. That I am an active patient.

This disease

When I say ‘this disease’ I mean Systemic Lupus Erythematosus. But I could be talking about any type of Lupus. Because there are many. Well, at least that is the way it seems. Even I have two types of Lupus, God help me. I have Lupus Cerebritis too. In your part of the world you may, very rightly, start to think, “But are you actually actively looking into it?” I say this is a fair thought because I am, for the larger part of my life, playing a game of catch up. It is just me, chasing after my Lupus and the ongoing onslaught it sends at my body. To which I do have to quietly remind you that there are so many things that can happen to a person with Lupus that you cannot predict what will happen next. The best I can do is just perform specific routines and rituals that I know won’t cause trouble in this diseased body of mine. Routines and rituals like eating healthy, avoiding sugars, air conditioning and sunlight, moisturising my skin twice daily taking certain supplements and double the amount of ‘regular check-ups’ I take.

Ladies Need Extra Check Ups

We all know that adulthood requires some regular check-ups. Optometrists and dentist’s being high on that list. There are more, I am sure. At the moment, though, there is only one more I can think of, and it is one for the ladies. I won’t go into this too much, so you needn’t worry about the ‘squirm’ factor. And, no, before your mind wanders too far, this is also not going to relate to last week’s post. What I do want to say is just this: as an active Lupus advocate and researcher I was really disappointed with myself these last few weeks. Personally, I like to pride myself on being well-informed. I feel as though I really reflect well on my disease, my health and my overall bodily-wellness. So how, after a decade with Lupus, had I never taken a moment to really think about the impact my disease might have on the health of my ‘ladies bits’??? Every two years, ladies (or adult women) are due for a regular ‘ladies check-up’ with their GP. This is sometimes called a ‘sexual health’ appointment and sometimes it is not. It is always called a Pap Smear. So, it isn’t like I didn’t have the opportunity.

My Lupus and My ‘Ladies Bits’

No. I am not going to actually talk to you about my ‘ladies bits’. But, why hadn’t I talked about them with my doctors? Why hadn’t I even thought about this? You’ve seen the outcome of my thorough thoughts on pregnancy, and functional health. I just cannot understand how I can have thought seriously and deeply about my ovaries, uterus, bladder, kidney, digestive tract and it’s…components…, brain, spine, lungs, heart, teeth and eyes. But I missed my ‘Ladies Bits’. I missed that crucial thought of can Lupus mess with these? And if so, how?

Lupus and ‘Ladies Bits’

The short answer is that yes. Apparently it is possible that, as well as autoimmune diseases like Lupus having an effect in our body, they can get down there too. There are too many for me to mention. And frankly, I am too tired to go on. Plus, you know, I like to think I’m too much of a lady to talk about vaginas here. But if you’ve got Lupus, or another autoimmune disease, you may want to look into the impact it can have on your, or someone you knows, ‘ladies bits’.