As I often share here – because I am immunocompromised and have several autoimmune conditions, as well as CRPS, a neurological pain condition that is unpredictable and easily set off by external stimuli, – I am always in a state of managing symptoms, though their presentation and severity is everchanging.

Still, recently, my symptoms have slowly been worsening – and I am now in a full-blown sickly situation.

Several weeks ago, while I was dealing with increased joint pain all over my body, I noticed my left knee was particularly troublesome – and discovered that it now has developed a large RA nodule, the largest that I have had to date.

(Before this one, I have had them on my hands, elbows, and feet only.)

Since then, I have gotten worse, with complete exhaustion, GI symptoms, and pain that has been difficult to control.

Last week, I was seen for injections on Friday – with some relief – but I am still sick.

Now, I have started the dread Medrol Dosepack – I hate taking them but there is no avoiding it – to try to break this – and I will be resting for the remainder of the week.

Since I find myself sitting here – again – I thought I would share with my fellow spoonies – particularly those friends who may be newly diagnosed – some of the early signs that a flare may be impending.

Granted, at times there is nothing we can do when this is the case. However, knowing that we are getting into trouble, sometimes getting right to bed for extra rest or calling the doctor to consider steroids if needed, can save a serious situation.

Also, bear in mind that flares may be brought on by stress, sleep deprivation, fatigue, an individual’s trigger foods, sun exposure and overheating, infections (even a simple cold can do it), weather changes (this is huge for many of us), exposure to allergens, or, sometimes, there is no discernable reason – it just happens.

Some Possible Early Warning Signs of an Autoimmune Flare:

1. Feeling even more fatigued than usual inexplicably.
2. Unusual fevers – though many of us run intermittent fevers. I always have them, but mine get much worse (as they have been recently).
3. A feeling of “itchy ears.” Though it sounds odd, I have seen this reported in several places and experience it myself when my inflammation levels are increasing suddenly. Exactly as it sounds, it feels like a deep internal ear itching.
4. Unusual skin rashes.
5. Mouth ulcers popping up.
6. Worse than normal headaches and brain fog. Though many of us deal with these symptoms daily, they may seem particularly bothersome before a flare.
7. Deeply achy joints. I think this is an across-the-board spoonie issue.
8. Sudden onset GI changes – nausea, loss of appetite, diarrhea or constipation, reflux – any of these may occur when our bodies are becoming more inflamed.
9. Swelling throughout our bodies – whether it is unusually puffy eyes or swollen hands or edema of the feet, inflammation can lead to swelling.
10. A feeling of overwhelm by things that normally would not be difficult to handle. This is reported often by spoonies before a flare.

These are just a few possibilities to keep in mind. Like all things autoimmune and spoonie – flare symptoms are highly individual.

Again, though often our flares come through like a hurricane, just no stopping them once they’ve started, at least realizing that we are beginning to get sick does allow for obtaining medications if needed – like the Medrol Dosepak that is currently working on me – as well as getting into the doctor for injections if necessary.

Also, with flares, extra rest is a must – so realizing that we are not well allows for schedule adjustments for self-care – our bodies will shut down on their own otherwise – and also to make any changes if there are big upcoming plans (as flares absolutely have a way of wrecking those).

I hope this has been helpful – and I wish you all much health and wellness (especially through all the weather changes and allergens we are experiencing right now). ❤

Be well, everybody. Take care of yourselves and each other.

Grace and Blessings.