IgG4‑related disease didn’t just infiltrate my organs; it infiltrated my self‑image. It rewrote the way I see myself, the way I move through the world, and the way I feel in my own skin. Chronic illness is usually framed as a medical journey, but I want to acknowledge the…
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Mikulicz disease — a rare pattern of organ involvement linked to IgG4-related disease (IgG4-RD) — is often misunderstood. This deeply disruptive condition is multiglandular, affecting the lacrimal glands (which produce tears), the parotid and submandibular glands (major salivary glands), and the lymphatic chain in the head and neck. When…
Before I was diagnosed with IgG4-related disease (IgG4-RD) in 2015, information about the symptoms was virtually nonexistent. I remember searching online for “intermittent chronic eyelid swelling” and finding very little. At one point, I came across only a handful of TikTok videos, and even those weren’t very helpful or…
IgG4‑related disease (IgG4-RD) doesn’t behave like an illness; it behaves like a character — one with a personality so distinct that, after a while, I stopped describing symptoms and started describing traits. If diseases had temperaments, IgG4‑RD would be the quiet, calculating type. The one that sits in the…
Note: This column describes the author’s own experiences with Rituxan (rituximab) and Uplizna (inebilizumab). Not everyone will have the same response to treatment. Consult your doctor before starting or stopping a therapy. I have immunoglobulin G4-related disease (IgG4-RD) that presents in the orbits. I had eyelid swelling from 1990…
I’m all moved out of my old home. But fully settled into the new one? Not even close. Even with all the planning, the lists, the pacing, and the four full weeks I gave myself to move from one home to another, I still managed to overwhelm my body and…
Although I’ve probably had immunoglobulin G4-related disease (IgG4-RD) for over 30 years, I was officially diagnosed about 10 years ago. Despite this, until recently, I’d never told anyone about it apart from medical professionals. I’d always be vague about what was ailing me, brushing it off when anyone asked.
As a working woman living with immunoglobulin G4-related disease (IgG4-RD), an autoimmune disease, I’m constantly looking for ways to save myself time and spare myself joint and nerve pain associated with the condition while completing everyday tasks. My spine, hands, and feet are impacted the most. Typing aggravates the joints…
The time on the clock when I opened my eyes on Thursday, June 18 was 1:45 a.m. I’d woken up just in time to make sure that my husband got up and out of the house. He’d been given an early assignment to cover the Knicks championship ticker-tape parade in…
I blinked my eyelids rapidly, hoping to generate some sort of moisture, but it didn’t work. The drier my eyes got, the harder it was to see clearly. And the blurrier my vision became, the more scrambled the letters on my laptop were. Staring at a laptop all day can…
