Remission in Sjogrens?

[Nancy978]

Can sjogrens go into remission? My biggest symptoms are dry eyes, dry mouth & fatigue. My eyes & mouth are the same but my fatigue has been gone for a week! The fatigue has been particularly bothersome for the past 6-9 months. I felt like I was dragging myself through my days. I had to plan regular rest periods & not do too much - "doing too much" could be a 30 minute walk on a Saturday morning, cooking breakfast & cleaning up the kitchen & then showering - that would drain my energy pretty much for the day.  I know everyone's familiar w/ the fatigue....last weekend I planned a small house project and thought I better do it early so I could rest. I ended up doing much more than I thought because I felt good & stayed busy the rest of the day. I though I'd pay for it over the next few days but I've been fine. I forgot what normal energy felt like & have been racking my brain trying to figure out what's changed. The only change is that I'd been on 40 mg Omemprazole for a month for silent heartburn. It's been effective relieving night time HB so I thought maybe I'm sleeping better & that's improving my fatigue - or it's reducing esophageal inflammation & that's helping...sorry for the rambling - so has anyone else experienced remission? Is it just spontaneous & the fatigue could return as quickly as it departed?

[irish]

I cant speak for remission cause after these many years I cant say that I have ever had remission. I can only say that with autoimmune diseases we tend to run a course that is not a flat line. We sort of tend to trend over and under the flat line.

Some minor tasks seem to knock us out of commission for many days and then there are times we can do quite a bit. I remember about 10 years or more ago I had 3 hours of time after lunch one day when I did so much housework, vacuumed, up and down stairs and actually felt the best I had felt in probably 20 years. I really enjoyed those hours. My hubby told me I would pay for it and I didn't think so.
He was right cause I woke up the next day in a world of hurt and fatigue that lasted quite a few days.

I have since been diagnosed and on IVIG and with Sjogrens and 4 other autoimmune diseases I never have energy anymore. Always a day late and a dollar short. We just all do the best we can and take it one day at a time. Irish

[SjoGirl]

I have read that yes, technically SJS can go into remission. I've not read his book about it, but Deepak Chopra has a book about spontaneous remission.

What I have learned is that I have good days and weeks or even months. Meds make a significant difference as does sleep. As well, for me, weather is a big factor with summer typically being great.

My bloodwork has been negative for SjS for several months, but my Rheumy says I still have it. I've learned not to question the good when it comes, I just enjoy it.

[Maria3667]

I've had Sjogren's for almost 2 decades now, I've never noticed it going into remission.
Mind you certain hormones like testosterone, dhea and Livial (combined preparation of synthetic hormones) do improve certain symptoms like dryness and fatigue but they don't totally disappear.

Also, I have read that pregnancy can make Sjogren's go into temporary remission.

[bebemoke22]

I think remission is possible. I saw a rheumy for the first time in a long time last month and he mentioned that he needed to do further testing because my SSA-Ro antibodies were no longer as prevalent. He asked me why I haven't been seeing him and if I have been treated elsewhere. I told him no. I simply have not. I got tired of the medication, took a sabbatical from my job, cut off meat from my diet and try to live as stress free as possible. My body used to reject soy and now it does not. I have not been experiencing a lot of the symptoms that I was experiencing in the past.  Removing stress from my life has alleviated a lot of the symptoms that I was having. I also cured a lot of the infections that I had. I guess that might be the reason why my body decided to fight itself less and less. Am I cured? I am not sure. The rheumy said that Sjogren's bever really goes away but I have felt better without pills and steroids for a while.

[trejonina]

Hello, a question for bebemoque
What medications did you use to treat/cure your infection ?please answer.

[felpeyu2]

Hello. I would say that temporal remission is possible. Or a temporal improvement in Sjogren. I think that there are several things that trigger our problems. Sometimes one of these things changes an we can feel an improvement.

I want to stand out that I had recently a temporal improvement in my Sjogren. And in my own case i think that it started whith the intake of omeprazole too. It is possible that something in my stomach was causing me some problems and the omeprezole is helping me in this issue.

On the other hand, I have the feeling that Sjogren has a lot of different faces, because my main problems were changing over the years: first joint problems, then eye problems, later chest/stomach problems...

So I would suggest that you enjoy your temporal remission and hope that it lasts for as long as possible.

[cccourt1942]

Hi Nancy,
     Welcome...I see this is your first post.  You didn't give your age, but I am thinking you are closer to 30 than any other milestone decade.  That being said, l'll offer the following: I am 75 and was diagnosed less than 4 years ago.  About 8 to 9 years ago I was treated for chronic sialadenitis and what was dxed as allergic conjunctivitis.  Both occurred frequently and were employment interrupting conditions.
      My dxing rheuy told me no one could say how long one has had sjogren's until at least treatment begins for one of the symptoms.  Therefore, he could say I would have been positive about 8-9 years ago.  After I joined this forum, I realized I have had SjS for decades.  And on top of that, there are numerous posters here who can trace their early symptoms to childhood.  No reason not to believe the anecdotal information.  I can trace my strange symptoms from just before peri menopause. 
     I worked until early 60s.  I continued to work part time in my field until I was 71.  Are there remissions?  Remission to one person means something else to the next.  I believe there is remission as I had so many life interrupting incidents which would put me flat on my back for a month to 6 weeks.  Sound like a flare?  Does to me.  How can so many of us on this board, sick for decades, have worked to retirement.  Many have taken disability due to their symptoms but most are in 50s, 60s.  One might say: feel better and another might say remission.
     When I joined this forum, I was amazed at the number of young SjS positive women asking questions about pregnancy. Some were wanting a 2nd or 3rd child, some were asking about first pregnancies.  If I hadn't had my children very early in life, I am not sure I ever had the continual health/strength to raise them thru the 25 years it took to raise them. 
      So can you?  I believe you can realizing your disease will advance with age...and age can affect you in other ways---not all associated with autoimmune disease.
     Good luck dear,
ccc

[Nymph]

Yes, I would say that some can achieve either remission or very good control for periods of time. If you still need meds then I would call that tight control rather than remission. So I guess I would say that I have had times of tight control when I was not particularly bothered by any symptoms for almost a year at a time. This year has been good for me, although I still experienced hair loss and dryness, as well as partial seizures, but no joint pain, very little fatigue. I feel like I've achieved tight control, and will get even better now that I am treating my pancreatic insufficiency entirely on my own! However, I am sure in the future I will have more issues. It is an ever-changing journey.

[Nancy978]

Thank you all for the responses. I appreciate the insight. CCC, I'm 47 and just "officially" diagnosed, but have had symptoms for 10+ years, primarily dry eyes & really dry lips.  I recall a few severe bouts of fatigue over the years that were short-lived (few days). Nothing like these past several months. I'm learning this waxing & waning is all part of the syndrome. Just take it day to day I guess. My fatigue has not yet returned & for that I am thankful. Wishing you all the best.