Pink with a twist--

I was surfing some stamping blogs today and saw that some of the ladies were not only turning their websites pink for October, but were going to donate money based on web traffic. What a great idea. I think I will do the same with a small twist.

For each comment on this post, I will donate 50 cents to the Susan G. Komen fund and 50 cents to the Lupus Foundation of America. I will donate up to a $100 to each foundation. Why split the money? What is lupus? Both good questions. You see, I have lupus. It is an autoimmune disease that impacts an estimated 1.5 - 2 million people, over 90 percent of which are women. The experts don't yet have a known cause or cure for lupus. It is often hard to diagnose, so the number of women that have lupus may be underestimated. While lupus can be deadly, it also can be treatable in many cases. Unfortunately, the road to diagnosis can be long and frustrating. Many people have significant organ damage before doctors figure out what is happening.

Here is a list of symptoms that is published by the Lupus Foundation of America.

"Although lupus can affect any part of the body, most people experience symptoms in only a few organs. The most common symptoms of people with lupus are listed below. Occurrences of particular symptoms happening are listed as percentages.

• Achy joints / arthralgia (95 percent)
• Fever of more than 100 degrees F / 38 degrees C (90 percent)
• Arthritis / swollen joints (90 percent)
• Prolonged or extreme fatigue (81 percent)
• Skin Rashes (74 percent)
• Anemia (71 percent)
• Kidney Involvement (50 percent)
• Pain in the chest on deep breathing / pleurisy (45 percent)
• Butterfly-shaped rash across the cheeks and nose (42 percent)
• Sun or light sensitivity / photosensitivity (30 percent)
• Hair loss (27 percent)
• Abnormal blood clotting problems (20 percent)
• Raynaud's phenomenon / fingers turning white and/or blue in the cold (17 percent)
• Seizures (15 percent)
• Mouth or nose ulcers (12 percent)"

I am lucky, my lupus has been annoying. While I have ended up in bed many days, for the most part, lupus has left my organs alone. Hopefully, we will see a cure for lupus in my lifetime. Thanks for helping fight two illnesses that are a constant battle for millions of women.

Here is a card a made a while back that seems to fit this post. One of the traits of lupus above is a butterfly rash. As a result, butterflies are often associated with lupus. This one just happens to be pink.


These two cards were made for two women I know that are currently battling lupus.




Hopefully we will all see a day when people no longer have to raise money to find cures and they can spend all their money on stamping :)

Thanks for stopping by.