Reverse-Diagnosis #2

Okay, I know I shouldn't self-diagnose myself anymore, but I can't help doing a little "reverse-diagnosis" (I am becoming quite adept at making up my own words and terms these days). By this I mean, now I have a diagnosis - Lupus - and I keep thinking back about the possible symptoms and signs I may have had but brushed off (Raynaud's is my Reverse-Diagnosis #1).

For example, now that I am learning more about lupus, I see that frequent nose bleeds are a common symptom. Back in college, I started suffering from spontaneous, really heavy nose bleeds. They would occur suddenly...I wouldn't even touch my nose or blow my nose, and it would start gushing out. And I mean GUSHING. I would have to stand over the sink for about half an hour before it stopped. People would always try to give me advice like hold my nose and tilt my head back, but because it was flowing so hard, all this resulted in was me gagging on the blood clot and it coming out of my mouth. I know, TMI. It happened frequently and I always just blamed it on the dry air, but now I am wondering if it had anything to do with lupus. They weren't normal nosebleeds like I used to get as a kid...they were heavy and would come out with huge chunks of jelly-looking coagulated blood. I know, TMI again, but I guess that comes standard with reading a blog about a medical condition? Anyway, they have become less frequent after getting my nose cauterized and moving to a warmer, more humid climate. I still wonder if the heavy bleeding and how long the nosebleeds lasted has anything to do with a low platelet count caused by lupus.

- a little lupie -