Autoimmune Flares: What Causes Them and How to Manage Them
When your immune system goes rogue and starts attacking your own tissues, you’re dealing with an autoimmune flare, a sudden worsening of symptoms in an autoimmune condition caused by immune system overactivity. Also known as an autoimmune exacerbation, it’s not just feeling tired—it’s your body literally turning on itself, often without warning. These flares don’t happen for no reason. They’re triggered by stress, infections, sunlight, certain meds, or even changes in your hormones. And while they’re common in diseases like Sjögren’s Syndrome, an autoimmune disorder that targets moisture-producing glands, causing dry eyes, dry mouth, and joint pain, they also show up in Addison’s disease, a condition where the adrenal glands fail and the body can’t make enough stress hormones, making every flare feel like a survival crisis.
What makes autoimmune flares so tricky is that they don’t follow a pattern. One person with Sjögren’s might flare after a cold, another after skipping their steroid dose. In Addison’s, missing a dose of steroid replacement, the lifelong treatment needed to replace hormones the body can no longer produce can trigger an adrenal crisis—vomiting, low blood pressure, even collapse. These aren’t random bad days. They’re biological alarms. And the treatments that help? They’re not one-size-fits-all. Some people need more rest, others need tighter control of inflammation, and some need to avoid specific triggers like UV light or certain medications that cause fluid retention—something you’ll see covered in posts about edema in CKD or drugs that cause swelling.
You won’t find a magic fix for autoimmune flares, but you will find real strategies in the posts below. From how Sjögren’s is diagnosed (and often missed) to why steroid replacement isn’t just a pill—it’s a daily balancing act—you’ll see how these conditions connect. You’ll also learn what to watch for when other meds interfere, how to spot early signs before a flare hits hard, and what actually works to bring things back under control. This isn’t theory. It’s what people living with these conditions use every day to stay ahead of the next flare.
Autoimmune Flares: Triggers, Prevention, and Early Intervention
Learn the real triggers behind autoimmune flares, how to prevent them with science-backed strategies, and why early intervention can cut flare duration by over six days. Practical, actionable steps for managing lupus, RA, MS, and more.
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