Caught It Early

In 2014 I started having miscellaneous symptoms. Nothing serious but bothersome enough to see a doctor.

Then, Thanksgiving day 2015 I had my first bout of severe fatigue to the point I could not stand.

I called my endocrinologist thinking my thyroid was out of whack. Blood work came back normal and the fatigue went away about a week later.

It's happening again

Then, Christmas 2015 it happened again. I called my endocrinologist again, but this time he wanted me to see a rheumatologist.

I went to the rheumatologist and at first, they were thinking Lupus because my sister has Lupus.

During my visits to the rheumatologist, when asked about my back, I would tell them about my SI joint on the left side.

I could still be searching for answers

Finally, an MRI was done and it showed inflammation on my left side and up my spine. So needless to say, I was diagnosed with AS June of 2017.

I say I was diagnosed early because it takes up to 10 years to be diagnosed for many people.

If it had not been for my endocrinologist's suspicion of a possible autoimmune disease, I might still be trying to find answers.