The Rarest of Them All

Last summer of 2017, I was diagnosed with something not everyone knows about. It is called "Evans Syndrome." "What is Evans?" you may ask. Well, Evans Syndrome is an Autoimmune Disorder where your own immune system starts to attack itself. "Why?" you may ask. This is a very rare syndrome and the blood doctors do not know how the immune system can start attacking itself. Everyone has cells of course; you have three main ones: Red Blood, White Blood, and of course Platelets. Platelet cells are your clotting cells. They help clot your blood whenever you get a cut. Everyone also has Antibodies that destroy bad cells such as infections and bacterial diseases. So last summer I was on my lady cycle which lasted for 17 days. I knew something wasn't right because I was very exhausted, slept all the time, felt fatigued, and lost color in my face. Bruising easily, and my heart rate would increase if I was just walking or sitting. What the doctors found was that my Antibodies started attacking my Platelet cells which I need. I was admitted into the hospital, very anemic and low on platelets. An average person needs about 150,000 to 450,000 of platelets, and I had 5,000 which is extremely low. That is why my period couldn't stop because of my clotting cells being destroyed. Their is no cure for this rare disease and I have been battling with this for about a year now. It has been an obstacle to balance with life and everything else. As time went on none of the therapies for me were working and I started to give up. Then I started to think to myself, with this negativity thinking of course I won't get better. I was also hospitalized twice. The second time I was admitted in the hospital was because I was having blood in my urine, which of course isn't normal and that detects a urinary infection. It didn't hurt so thats what I was confused about. I had transfusions which one transfusion stopped working on me. The transfusion used on me was called "IVIG" which is used to trick the immune system and keep it stable until the doctors found what the issue was. I had a terrible side effect which that infusion. I had a terrible cough that I couldn't shake off. I coughed so hard one night that I popped a blood vessel in my eye. Then I had a terrible migraine I just could not sleep it off. I stayed in the hospital for 5 days and missed my last first day of senior year. Of course I was upset because it was my last first day of being in high school. A year goes by and I got my IUD placed in the Mirena due to it being to risky to have a period again. Im also traumatized to have another one. I almost couldn't graduate high school because of my illness and having to miss a lot of class days. Which stressed me out thinking I wasn't going to be able to graduate after all the hard work I put in. I had to make up 16 hours in order to graduate, which I did and I walked that stage like I owned it! its now October and it seems as if my immune system is behaving. I did have a scare where I had to be taken into the hospital because my body felt weak and I knew something wasn't right. Sure enough it was my platelets which went down to 34,000. Not the best I want to keep it above that. I live each day praying and hoping a cure will be made for rare diagnosis. Its hard to know that I have an antibody attacking me and have no idea why or how. I live by this quote forever which is: "Life Doesn't Allow you to be Weak." I pray to god I will outgrow this rare disorder, I just gotta take it one day at a time.