I have flare-up free for 64 days now and been home in quarantine almost the same time. I came home to work to and take care of myself during the pandemic and really didn’t know how long it was going to last. I’m at the 8 week mark and other than a walk outside for fresh air I’m not venturing far. There is a this underling question about being more at risk or not.
With MCTD and Lupus I’m not sure and they aren’t really sure if I’m at more risk but the real unknown is what will my immune system do if I do get COVID-19? This is not something I want to test and although there is a chance that my immune system would put me in flare and do what it does best which is zap out everything in its path I am not willing to take that chance yet. I have taken precautions at home and stayed out of the public, have lots of deliveries, exercise every day and try to continue to eat well. Being healthy is part of keeping me healthy so although I too want to indulge in comfort foods and quarantine snacks I am doing everything I can each day to ensure that I stay as healthy as possible and make it out of the this time feeling good and well. As well, my husband is an essential worker who needs to be out in the public so navigating that has been tricky but definitely doable.
Finding ways to exercise outside in the fresh air has been very uplifting. Finding people to exercise with outside and social distance has even been more uplifting. There are ways to find joy even in these uncertain times and it is also ok to feel every emotion including sadness and anger as we think about our current state the state of our loved ones. Everyone is dealing with their own situation when it comes to this and there is no right or wrong way, it is all what is best for the individual. What is working or right for me may not be what is ok for someone else and that is totally ok. We are going to have to make choices and even more now we need to feel good about our choices. As an induvial with an autoimmune disease I am making choices and decisions for myself all the time so now it is just ramped up even more.
As a way to really stay connected I zoom a lot with people and although it is a bit of a cluster when everyone is trying to talk over each other it really is a great way to see people. I hope you are all doing what is working for you and looking forward to finding a new social base line soon.
Me vs Mixed Connective Tissue Disease 