Chronic Pain: Lupus, Arthritis, RA

Researched on WebMD.com, mayoclinic.com, and medicinenet.com, Say Goodbye To Illness by: Dr. Nambudripad

What differentiates Lupus, Arthritis, Rheumatoid Arthritis?
There are many different types of chronic pain. Autoimmune diseases tend to be some of the hardest to cope with. Lupus and rheumatoid arthritis are two different types of autoimmune diseases that cause chronic pain.
An autoimmune disease can be viewed as the body attacking itself. There is very little understanding as to why this happens to some people and not to others. However, it is believed that there is a genetic pattern to them. Dr. Devi Nambudripad, developer of NAET Allergy Elimination, believes that autoimmune diseases are due to multiple sensitivities that allow the body to become weak. When you re-define an allergen “as anything that causes an adverse reaction in the body that wouldn’t ordinarily cause an adverse reaction in a healthy individual”, you can understand how anything can lead to disease. In terms of Traditional Chinese Medicine autoimmune diseases are referred to as “knotty diseases” because they are so complex. Often times they are associated with varying types of “bi syndromes” or damp congestions. However, the part that tends to makes these diseases complicated is that there are multiple underlying disharmonies in the body to begin with, and they need to be addressed. This can make recovery take a little bit longer. One thing I tell my patients is that “It took you a long time to get to where you are. It won’t take a life time to go away, but it will take time.” When people are in pain 24/7 having a couple of hours or a day pain-free is a vast improvement. You can expect to see baby steps in the beginning, and then maybe a big improvement. One thing is for sure, you will see not only changes in the pain but also sleep, mood, digestion, and other symptoms you were not attributing to the chief issue.

By using acupuncture, Traditional Chinese Medicine, and NAET Allergy Elimination in combination with your doctor prescribed medications you are working to not only decrease the pain, but also treat the reasons why you are having the pain in the first place. Can we change the joint deformities from RA? No, but we can help to decrease the swelling, pain, and prevent flare-ups.


Lupus
Lupus is a chronic relapsing autoimmune disease that attacks the connective tissues of various organs, including skin, joints, kidneys, and serosal membranes. It is sometimes thought of as a form of arthritis because it attacks the joints. The cause of lupus is unknown, but it is believed to be a caused by a possible failure of the regulatory mechanism of the autoimmune system.
Symptoms often include: swollen joints, extreme fatigue, skin rash, and sensitivity to light
Common ways of treating lupus include: Medications given to you by your primary care doctor or rheumatologist, Acupuncture and Chinese Herbs, and NAET Allergy Elimination.

Arthritis and Rheumatoid Arthritis
Arthritis is defined as chronic inflammation of one or more joints. The causes of Arthritis depends on what type you have. Often times injury can lead to osteoarthritis, you can have metabolic or hereditary factors, abnormalities (gout, pseudogout), direct and indirect effect of infections (bacterial and viral), or an autoimmune disease like rheumatoid arthritis or lupus).

Symptoms of Arthritis often include: pain and limited function of joints, inflammation, joint stiffness, swelling, redness and warmth

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disorder that affects the joints in the hands and feet. However, on rare occasions it can attacks the body’s own tissues like the organs (lungs or eyes). Unlike the wear-and-tear damage of osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis affects the lining of your joints, causing a painful swelling that can eventually result in bone erosion and joint deformity. It is two to three times more common in women than in men and generally occurs between the ages of 40-60 years old. You can have periods of time where there are no symptoms (remission), or have a flare up (relapse).
Common symptoms of RA: fatigue, loss of energy, lack of appetite, low grade fever, muscle and joint aches, stiffness. Most pain is generally in the morning or after extended periods of inactivity. Joints become swollen, painful, red and tender because the lining tissue of the joint (synovium) becomes inflamed.