I’ve seen videos of people expressing shock and confusion over Christina Applegate revealing that she doesn’t have MS. She learned this years after she was diagnosed and began treatment for that autoimmune disease. I was not shocked. I was just disappointed because it happens more often than we’d like to think. I also feel her pain because as my symptoms got worse I feared I’d die before doctors would ever figure out what was really going on with me.

One of the remarks I’ve seen most often is that if someone like her with money and connections can’t get the right diagnosis what does that mean for the rest us? I know it took me almost 17 years to get what I believe is the correct diagnosis. Prior to that I was told I had conditions that were more common in African-Americans, like lupus, sarcoidosis, and MS. This was even though tests show med that I did not have those conditions. I got sicker with every new drug and the passage of time. 

The reality is there is not one specific test for ms or the condition I have IgG4-rd. Doctors have to pour over your records and analyze tests, scans and symptoms to try to figure out what you have, which leads a lot of room for interpretation. Data shows that as many as 12 million people are impacted by diagnostic errors every year in the United States. Nearly 800,000 of them become disabled or die from misdiagnosis. This is a scary reality.

I wrote my memoir,  Misdiagnosed : The Search For Dr. House, about my struggle to get the right diagnosis because I wanted to enlighten people about the problem. The truth is even if you do everything right you might still find yourself in the same situation that Christina Applegate is in. All I can do is pray that she finds the answer she desperately needs and everyone else does as well. The best things you can do is learn how to advocate for yourself, share your struggles with others so you and they don’t feel alone, keep copies of your own records, demand tests if you don’t think you’re getting the right answers and don’t be afraid to fire your doctor and find one who is listening to your concerns. Fight! 

#WomensHealth #autoimmunedisease #chronicillness #misdiagnosis #ChristinaApplegate #MS #igg4