Great Gifts for the Lupie in your Life

Every lupie needs The LupusEncyclopaedia, by Dr Donald
Thomas.

I've just about finished my Christmas gift shopping. (Yes, I'm one of those people.) I don't like going
to shopping centres at Christmas time, when they're crowded and all the kids in the area are on school holidays, and the air conditioning just doesn't seem to be able to cool that number of people. So I get my Christmas stuff out of the way earlier in the year, and just shop on line from late November until about mid-January.

Wrapping presents made me think about the best gifts for lupies.  Here's my suggestions, from a variety of price ranges, of things most lupies should have.

• The Shade UV light sensor. This could save a lupie's life. It helps track the amount of sunlight she/he is exposed to, and for many of us, sunlight is a very dangerous thing.
• The Lupus Encyclopaedia, by Dr Donald Thomas, from Johns Hopkins University Press.  For all the general information every lupie needs.  (For specific, personal advice, always speak to your own rheumatologist.  For everything else, Dr Thomas is a great source of information.)
• A heat pack.  Everyone needs a heat pack or a hot water bottle for the occasional pain that just won't go away.
• A Tens machine.  This is the machine the physiotherapist uses to help control pain.  Electrodes

  

  A tens machine, this large type,
  or a small portable one is great
  for temporary pain control.

  are attached to the skin, and gentle electrical pulses help ease pain.  (I have two of these: a big one that also has foot pads to rest my feet on while sitting, and a little portable one to carry with me.)
• 
  
• A couple of ready-made home-cooked meals to keep in the freezer for a bad day.
• A soft blanket, or Egyptian cotton sheets. When you spend a lot of time in bed, you appreciate nice, comfortable bedding.
• Cute and comfortable pyjamas - for the same reason as comfortable bedding.
• A massage. (Or a massage chair - if you have the money - or a massage mat that goes on the bed.)



A Shade UV light sensor gives the
freedom to know how long it is safe to
stay outside.

• A pill sorter, the type that has three or four sections for each day of the week, and each day's pills can be removed, so it's possible to take enough pills for a day out, without taking the whole week's worth.
• Something from the Lupus Business Directory, where your purchase will help out someone with a chronic illness, while giving you a unique gift.