Lupus Books

Dr. Daniel Wallace is my lupus doctor and has been for many years. This book talks about everything important about dealing, having and living with lupus. He is an amazing doctor and writer!

This book is good but VERY technical...Good thing I am a nurse...I gave it to some of my family to read and they truly could not understand a lot of the book. It is great information but make sure you have a medical dictionary handy if you aren't familiar with medical terminology.

I bought this b/c I thought a relative had lupus. While she does not, I am still keeping the book b/c it is a wealth of information on all types of arthritic diseases, the origins of the disease, symptoms, various treatments and what to expect from the treatments. I am keeping this as a great medical reference book !

And trust me, I've read them all. The only thing is - if you have ZERO background whatsoever on this disease, or in science in general, don't start with this book. Instead, start with one of the more general, introductory books like "living with lupus" or "lupus q and a" to just get a background because this is one heavy-duty book, laden with science that is very thorough, comprehensive, and sometimes complicated. It's amazing though, and a must-read. I'm VERY happy this exists.

I have been struggling with autoimmune diseases with them potentially evolving into Lupus. This book has been helping me get through some really tough times. It also has helped to be able to talk to doctors with a clearer understanding of this disorder. I have been diagnosed with fibromyalgia and this book along with Dr. Wallace's fibromyalgia book have really put things in perspective for me. I have read many books on the subject and this book by far is the best!

Dr. Thomas McPherson Brown, how antibiotics work, and the clinical trials--It's all here. The Road Back, the first book by Henry Scammell and Dr. Brown is here too. This is the update.

Between chapters explaining the science are patients' stories. They're doing everything from skiing and skin diving to playing with children and dogs. They share how the common drugs didn't help, and sometimes almost killed them! On antibiotics their diseases are controlled.

When I asked about antibiotics, my doctors refused. They'd prescribe it if it worked, wouldn't they? Well, if you like cover-up stories this is for you. Dr. Brown explains the history--how the auto-immune theory took hold. The patients see another side. Arthritis is big business. Treating us indefinitely is profitable. Curing us--is not.

Page 33: "...Until physicians are confronted by educated consumers, there is very little incentive for them to change. ...Just because MIRA therapy repeatedly has proven effective doesn't mean physicians will automatically give it to everyone it can help. In some cases that will depend on how effectively patients are able to use the power of this new knowledge. That is the reason for this book."

I was almost completely crippled by lupus and RA. I had taken all the usual drugs, I did everything with nutrition; nothing helped. Fortunately a friend told me about this book. On this therapy my pain is gone, I move normally, my deformities are less, and my blood work is better. I am in remission.

I wish I had known and acted sooner. So please READ THIS BOOK!! And see [...]

Great Information, Great Book, 5 STAR no question about it. I liked the book very much, has some great alternatives to conventional wisdom.

This text provided my family and I an alternative treatment outlook for the future of an RA suffer. At my age, 28 the toxic medication on offer from my specialist wasn't appealing. We were able to read and understand the disease better, it's long term impact on our lives and hopefully have found a safe effective alternative treatment. We have nothing to loose.

I bought this book for 2 people i know who have RA. I don't think either of them read it. You really have to be ready to think outside the traditional medical box to get this book. It was originally recommended to me by someone with RA who read it and is doing the treatments and is living a wonderful life because of it. She said it saved her life. I think it's worth knowing this information.

I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis at 33 years old. I grew up very healthy and active. In September 2005, I had my second child, a girl. I was 32 years old. During both pregnancies I had hyperemesis gravidarum, which means extreme nausea and vomiting during pregnancy. In October and November of 2005, I had two root canals (I ruined my teeth from vomiting during pregnancy). My immune system was down because I had just had a baby (the immune system lowers as to not reject the fetus), I was getting very little sleep with a newborn, and I had just had two root canals, the perfect entrance for bacteria. In December 2005, the balls of my feet began to ache. By the beginning of January 2006, I knew something was wrong. I did some investigating later and found out I had a great aunt with Scleroderma and three second cousins with RA. There are also a lot of allergies and asthma in my family, indicating a pattern of hypersensitive immune systems. (I always thought I was the lucky one in the family who didn't get allergies. It seems my allergies have just manifested themselves in a different manner.) About a week later, I was in extreme pain and I had read a lot about RA and knew that my symptoms matched. I referred myself to a local rheumatologist. My pain had spread to over 35 joints. I was having trouble lifting my newborn baby, opening jars, turning car keys, fastening infant seats, putting on my 4-year-old's socks, brushing my teeth, washing my hair, etc. I required at least 12 hours of sleep at night, and was still tired during the day. I was very depressed. I would cry every day, usually out of frustration because I could not undo my seat belt or put on my son's socks for school. Everything that I read said this disease was progressive, degenerative and crippling. I could not imagine it getting any worse than it was! I was referred to [...] by other RA patients. I read and read. I contacted my local area contact. I told him I was considering starting Enbrel the following week. He e-mailed back that I had a choice to make. I could give antibiotics a try and possibly go into remission or get significantly better; or I could go on potentially harmful immune suppressors, which would usually eventually wear off and I would have to jump from one drug to the next. And what would happen if I ran out of drugs to try? He said there is hope in AP. With AP, I had the hope of getting better. With the other drugs, I was merely suppressing the symptoms, not getting to the root cause of the illness. I ordered the book The New Arthritis Breakthrough and started posting on the roadback board. It made much more sense than the conventional autoimmune wisdom which stated that: One random day my immune system just up and decided to attack my joints for no reason at all. I finally came to the conclusion that I did not want to just suppress my pain and symptoms. I wanted my life back. I knew that in the past I always tended to get side effects of medications and I thought I would probably be one of the 1% of people who got lymphoma, TB, or severe infection from the biologics. I knew I wanted to be alive to watch my kids grow up. It was not like I was NOT going to be treating my RA; I would be treating my RA with an American College of Rheumatology approved DMARD. I decided to try the antibiotic protocol. It was the best decision I have ever made. Within 1-2 months of being on Zithromax, the depression and fatigue had disappeared. Within 3 months, I felt 60% better. After 10 months, I was 98% back to my normal self. 18 months later, and I have only one finger that will not bend all the way into a fist (it is about an inch away). My rheumatoid factor has dropped from 282 to 28 and my CCP has dropped from it's all-time high of 153 to 55. My sed rate is 1.0 and my CRP is .3. I walk two miles a day. My feet, neck, knees, ankles, and shoulders do not hurt at all! I thank God, Dr. Thomas McPherson Brown, Henry Scammell,and The Road Back Foundation for giving me my life back!

This book gave me a great amount of knowledge and detail about Lupus. However, I especially enjoyed the author's table talk approach. The text was not weighted down with too many medical terms. Instead, the author did an excellent job of sharing her everyday battles and victories with Lupus. The encouraging words and advice she offers can be applied to improve everyday life, not only those living and battling with Lupus. Excellent!

I have had two family members to die from Lupus. And I still didn't have a clue of what it was. This book gave me great knowledge of the disease. It also gave me insight of what my family members were going through. I really enjoyed the book.

This is an excellent book full of inspiring and informative information. It is a good book to read even for people who are not suffering from Lupus."If it got any better I could not stand it".

I thought this book was very informative to read with or without having lupus. It's very detailed about letting you know what a person wiht lupus goes through no matter how healthy they may appear on the outside. The book has wonderful stories about the writer trials and tribulations and how she personally beat lupus. This book was motivational and funny and it's a great book to read if you have or know someone that has lupus.

I enjoyed the book more than I expected too. I first picked it up expecting to just scam throught it but I just couldn't put it down. It offered hands on life details of a real person sufferng from lupus. I really didn't know alot about this hidden disease, but found out alot once I read the book. It was also many parts in the books that made me cry mainly because I began to put myself in the authors shoes. It was an excellent book to me.

Having Lupus I have been searching and searching for a book that truly expresses what I am going through. When I started reading Pumpkin I realized that I had found that book. I read the book in one sitting and am going to suggest it to my family. I am experiencing much of what Eileen went through, it's as if the book were about me personally. Patricia does a remarkable job conveying Eileen's thoughts although she did not have the disease herself. She really understood her daughter well and Eileen was so lucky for that. I would recommend this book for others who have Lupus as well as their family members.

I read this book as I have recently gotten involved with the Dorough Lupus Foundation which was set up after Howie Dorough of the Backstreet Boys lost his sister Caroline to Lupus.

This story is about Eileen and was written by her mother. Eileen fought hard against the effects of Lupus. Every setback that was thrown at her she fought against, and in the end, she lost. But her strength and perserverance moved me.

I highly recommend this book to everyone. Lupus is a disease that is not as widely known as others, but is very devastating. We need to to find a cure for this illness so no more people die from it.

I thought this was a good book, and very easy to read. I have a friend with lupus, and she is very much like the main lady in this book. It is good to see how other people deal with these things. I think the author knows how to touch the heart of people and that is a very special gift. I read this book, and Stolen Moments by Fisher, and both have helped me in a big way to understand my friend with this illness. Hope they find a cure for it soon. I would recommend this book for anyone dealing wtih any illness, personally or with someone they love.

Once I began reading I could not put it down. It made me laugh and brought me to tears. It is such a beautiful tribute to the author's daughter and allows Eileen to be loved and admired by people who never had the joy of meeting her. God bless her family and their strength, it was truly inspiring.

I have a sister who died of Lupus and reading this book really does explain what goes on in your life when someone close to you is ill. Even though you feel hopeless, even though you're scared for that person, you know you have to be strong and cherish every single moment. I enjoyed this book because it reminds you how important your life is. Eileen had brothers,sisters and parents who loved her and even though she was sick she tried to make the most of it which is inspirational to all of us.

An excellent read - a compelling story. An in depth look at the doctor - patient relationship - taking you through the entire range of emotions that accompany a complex and severe disease like lupus. Dr. Bonner writes from the heart with a candidness that brings this true story to life. Whether you are a doctor or a patient, his book allows you to experience first hand the joys, challenges, and sadness of medicine.

I have often wondered what really goes through a doctor's mind when they are faced with a challenging case. So often we see stories of triumph and loss from the patient's point of view-it is interesting and thought provoking to view it from another aspect. This book is written in a conversational tone that draws you in and invites you to look from the physician's perspective at a case that clearly touched his heart.
This is a compelling book that I will read again.

I found this book to be very emotional and very touching. Written from the perspective of the physician and team, I remembered how medicine used to be practiced when the patient was an actual person instead of a case number. My husband and I are very close friends with Diane's sister, Jan, and appreciate her giving us the insight to this book. As a Registered Nurse I was fascinated with the medical side of this case. Knowing how medicine has advanced since this case it gives us all hope for the future. I am looking forward to meeting Dr. Bonner when he comes to Union.

Dr. Bonner has done a wonderful job of telling the story of Dianne Lewis' battle with lupus. The story was very real to me since Dianne was a personal friend and my husband and I were spending time at the Medical University with a son who had a heart defect during the time Dr. Bonner writes about. From his story I felt like I was walking the halls there again. A book well worth reading.

This book is a first-hand look through the "key-hole" at the patient-doctor relationship in a complex and challenging disorder, Systemic Lupus. The author spares no details to chronicle a tragic progression of events in a time when less was known and certain about this disease. As a physician, I can fully appreciate the "feel" of the university environment described, with its mixture of caring and chaos, and the real emotions experienced by both patient and doctor. I had difficulty putting this book down and would highly recommend it to anyone.

This book is a decent intro to the topic if you don't know much about it, and definitely gets points for being a quick, easy read. I would recommend it to someone that knows very little (or nothing) about lupus, but not for anyone that has a good knowledge base already. It does contain a lot of good information, but a lot of it is obvious common sense you don't need to pay for (like.. are you tired? rest! or a great way to exercise is to walk!)...

This book provides up to date coverage of a complex and commonly misunderstood disease. It is easy to read and well organized, yet provides a great deal of detail. Suggestions for action as well as for further inquiry are provided.

WOW! This is was a well written book and has answered many of my questions. I was pleased to see there was a whole chapter dedicated to Antiphospholipid Antibody Syndrome. This book will stay in my personal library.

Easy to read, with current information. Definitely a book to buy. Very helpful and answered a lot of questions. It was nice to see a whole chapter dedicated to APS & Pregnancy. Will be recommending this book to others.

This book covers all the ins and outs of a disease that is just as much a mystery now as it was years ago. This gives detailed information about what to expect in testing, physician's appointments, symptoms, different treatment options and how to cope with the fact that you have a chronic disease.

Wow, simply put, I'd consider this essential reading for anybody wanting to understand the innermost emotions and fears of loved-ones suffering from incurable diseases. This is a heart-rending and engaging poetic anthology that describes the daily travails, some life-shaping events and the social interactions of a mother and wife and daughter and friend who simply wants to remember and record her very personal journey. She shares her deepest and most personal thoughts about life and love and everyday occurrences in this easily readable "please don't put me down" paperback, and you won't. One strong appeal of this collection is the author's brief description of her debilitating battle with lupus, and her desire to put thoughts and memories to paper while this is possible. In essence she is acknowledging the support and comfort provided by her close friends and some casual acquaintances. For anybody who has ever thought of putting penned memories to paper, this is a very appealing, enticing and highly recommended read.

I am the daughter of this amazing woman, who I am proud to call my mom...I must admit that I haven't read all of the poems in this book...but am looking forward to when I find time in my schedule...My mom has been struggling with Lupus for most of her life, but suprisingly enough, she still happens to be one of the strongest and most loving people I have ever met. This book alone has taught me to not take anything for granted...and instead worship what you have already..to focus on THE SMALLEST THINGS in life...not to always expect more. I consider myself extremely lucky to have a mom who is incredible. She is my role model, my best friend and inspiring, not only to me, but to most people she meets. I hope that you will be able to share the joy and endure the lesson that these beautiful poems will teach, like myself and many other people have experienced. I love my mom. Congratulations!

Once the reader recognises the tremendous challenges that the author has obviously endured with her Lupus condition(described at the beginning), the depth and beauty of the poetry is all the more stunning!

Awe inspiring, thank you.

T.R. Moses
Australia

You should know that I have known, cared deeply for and respected the author for as long as I can remember, although relocation separated us many years ago and we virtually lost contact - some years before she was struck by this mysterious, potentially crippling condition. I read this book not for a love of poetry - it's not 'my thing' - but rather to try and learn more of the manifestations of Lupus - and more about how it has affected someone who I know well.

Through what I suspected (and confirmed having read the book) would be very personal expressions, I learnt about the power of Lupus and how it has changed the author's life. More than this - much, much more - I learnt and will remain inspired by her courage, as she faced and faces daunting knowns and unknowns and has steadfastly refused to let Lupus dim her determination to express herself through her obvious passion for poetry - even if the tone and content of her expressions are markedly different to what she undoubtedly would otherwise have hoped to be writing about during this chapter of her life.

Therein lies her own personal victory - which I hope she is able to acknowledge - and the inspiration to others similarly afflicted as well as their loved ones.

A quest for testament, knowledge, and enlightenment as memories and experience composed in visual language that appeals intellectually as well as emotionally.

Despite the overwhelming presence of ailments and incapacitation, disease is not the dominant theme of the book nor does it define the author.

At the heart of the words in this book lies the radiant heart of the author.

My spouse and daughter have Scleroderma and Lupus. If you are not aware of these devastating, life altering and disabling diseases, you should learn about them. Living in constant pain, depression, restricted mobility and humiliation takes its toll in addition to the health and wellness affects.
Waverly's book I consider a masterpiece of strong will, determination, focus and an honest open minded approach to a higher quality of life. Her inspirational vision accepting her condition, evaluation her situation, developing a plan and implementing it with consistent dedication using and allowing only positive influences from medications, wellness and holistic treatments to beliefs and idealisms, reminds us all by the end of the book, there is no doubt we all can learn and benefit from her journey.
This book has significantly increased my hope and desire for a better quality of life for my spouse and daughter, I will read it again and certainly recommend it to everyone. It's not just about Lupus.
I found her book at HealingLupusBook.com.

When she says "Healing Lupus: Steps in a Personal Journey" she is giving you the beginning, the end and the subject matter, but the process is one that takes a book to understand. She actually had the idea to try to heal herself from this terrible disease and she did it, not overnight, but she did it. It takes determination, just a little bit, everyday to begin the process. If you can heal yourself from Lupus what more can you do? Her story is inspiring and tells me that if she can do it so can I. My story does not have Lupus but the disability is the same. To heal, just don't give up.

Healing Lupus is riveting reading to me, as a health professional, because it provide an honest, first-hand look at a unique experience of recovery from lupus. The insights here could be applied to other chronic illnesses as well. This book is invaluable to the thousands of lupus sufferers who need the kind of testimonial that this book offers, a hopeful, even miraculous recovery from an illness that Western medicine treats with prescription medications. Those medications begin the journey, but there is a surprise here. The medications are left behind after years of struggle. The mystery of author's healing from a debilitating, sometimes fatal, illness is unraveled through the eyes and unique voice of someone who has walked the walk. The author used emotional release as the key to her physical recovery - this is no mystery to her, only to those of us who have not yet encountered such a story. We walk with her step by step as the journey unfolds.

Well-written, well-researched, well-reasoned and at times, more than a little funny. I think this book is a must for all lupus sufferers frustrated with currently approved FDA treatments. We're lucky that Mr. DeBartolo, a great investigative journalist, got sick. The 3 years of research he did to find a treatment that worked for him - UVA1 photo therapy - benefits us all. What I do not fully understand is why the work of Dr. McGrath at LSU has been so "long-ignored." Is it really because the big drug companies can't make a dime off his work? Makes me want to move to Canada! Especially useful (and informative) is the book's extensive reference of UVA1 lupus therapy research. Thank you, Mr. DeBartolo. You've given me some hope!

I have reviewed this book twice. I review books for a National Foundation. It offers more information for the treatment of Lupus (withholding drug treatment) than any other book I have reviewed. The information provided in this book allows a person with lupus to "look outside the box" of conventional drug treatment for lupus. Understand that in doing this the person may meet with some resistance from physicians. Who rightfully are doing what they know, what they have been taught. This treatment has not received the attention it deserves. Nor has the physician who heads this research, Dr. Hugh McGrath. The author is amazingly informed of the technology involved. He tells of his own battle and appears driven to regain his health. In searching what may help him, he finds this amazing treatment for the immune system, an approved NIH study, not a fly-by-night theory. I am grateful that the author, Anthony DeBartolo, was inspired to share with us this fascinating technology. Since the treatment doesn't involve drugs, the pharmaceutical companies are not interested. So people, rise up and claim your health, read this book. It may save your life.

I've had lupus for 10 years and have read everything I could get my hands on. This is positively the most helpful book I've read. What is so surprising is that the UVA1 light treatment has also been around for 10 years. Like I just read in another review, I guess I'm lucky that a investigative journalist got sick. This is one lupus book I'm sure the money-grubbing drug company cartel didn't want written. Thank you!

I felt like I was reading about myself, couldnt better describe the pain and frustration in waiting for an answer - excellent book - highly recommend!

Very informative. I cried all night when I read this book because I realized I was not alone. This author had lived he dignosis nightmare that people with lupus face. The author also explains the "imposter" illnesss that can mask lupus symptoms. Five stars are not enough!

Very informative. I cried all night when I read this book because I realized I was not alone. This author had lived he dignosis nightmare that people with lupus face. The author also explains the "imposter" illnesss that can mask lupus symptoms. Five stars are not enough!