Still No Answers—Just A Whole Lotta Pain and a Dr. Google PhD

Hey friends,

Let’s talk autoimmune disease—because apparently, that’s my new personality now.

I finally got the lab results back from the new rheumatologist. And let me just say… if lab reports came with a narrator, mine would definitely be voiced by Morgan Freeman saying, “She had no idea what any of this meant.”

Here’s what I do know: I still don’t have a Rheumatoid Factor, which means we’re still living in that mysterious land of Seronegative RA (SnRA for the medically curious). But plot twist—this time I do have a positive ANA and an ANA pattern, which could mean literally anything or absolutely nothing, depending on which corner of Dr. Google you ask. Some corners are helpful, others are like, “Good luck with that, sweetie.”

So while my blood is apparently sending out mixed signals like a toxic ex, I’m still in the dark until my next appointment in August (yep, cue the dramatic music). Until then, all I can do is wait—and hurt. Because yes, the pain is still very real, very nightly, and very please-someone-knock-me-out-with-a-tranquilizer level bad.

This is your gentle reminder that autoimmune stuff is messy, unpredictable, and exhausting. I’m still here, still trying to function, and still Googling every weird lab term like it’s going to solve my problems. Spoiler: it won’t. But it gives me something to do between unknowledgeable hand massages and late-night pacing.

So here’s to answers that hopefully come in August… and to all of us who suffer silently and stubbornly until then.

Take care of your body. Advocate for yourself. And if you need me, I’ll be over here building my WebMD resume and rubbing my hands like I know what I am doing.