Hey all,

Most of you know that my son and I have been into Tae Kwon Do for the past 6+ years. There has been a girl in class that entire time who is now a 2nd degree black belt. She is 17, energetic, into sports, full of life, a Christian, and a great person.

She has had a lot of physical issues over the years we have known her, fainting, IBS, and other issues. She hurt her hip this past spring during a softball game, and she has had numerous other injuries and issues as well.

She is a great kid, how many 17 year old girls would bother to stop by a 12 year old boys birthday party and actually hang out with them? She was at Alex's party on the 1st and she didn't look well, she said she had been feeling very tired and had a headache that just wouldn't go away. She ended up in the hospital on Wednesday of that week, she had passed out several times, and she was having problems with one eye physically looking larger than the other. She had an MRI, and other test, nothing seemed to point to an answer.
She showed up at TKD class on Friday, but was so weak she could only sit and watch. She told me about the hospital visit, and that she still had the headache, as well as having about a 50% reduction in her vision.

I got a call from her last night, she sounded sad and weak. She told me the dr's had run some more tests, and they were waiting on the results, but they were leaning towards Lupus as a cause for all the issues.

I'm struggling with this; Heather is a great kid and a Christian. She has been a good example to the other kids in the TKD class, and to Alex as well. I had asked her what she wanted to do in life and she told me she has always planned to be a Sheriff's Deputy, and to get married and have a "bunch of kids".

Lupus could put a stop to most of these dreams (if not all).

Definition:
Lupus is an autoimmune disease that can affect various parts of the body, including the skin, joints, heart, lungs, blood, kidneys and brain. Normally the body's immune system makes proteins called antibodies, to protect the body against viruses, bacteria, and other foreign materials. These foreign materials are called antigens.

In an autoimmune disorder like lupus, the immune system cannot tell the difference between foreign substances and its own cells and tissues. The immune system then makes antibodies directed against itself. These antibodies -- called "auto-antibodies" (auto means 'self') -- cause inflammation, pain and damage in various parts of the body.

Please take a minute to pray for Heather.

Thanks for your prayers and time.
David