The first rule in living successfully with Lupus is self-observation, scanning all your body every day.  Doing this exercise is a good way to check yourself, see if anything hurts more than usual.  Detecting unusual pain is important to detect a flare in its early stages, when you can detect a coming flare, you can nip it in the bud.

Knowing yourself is the key to catch the ups and downs associated with the disease, which is the key to keep yourself on the remission side of the condition.  The first step is to know what are the most recurring symptoms for you, what triggers them, and be on the lookout for them.

Making a list of frequent symptoms and what can possibly trigger them is useful.  Have a small notebook with you always, so you can jot down any symptoms that come up during the day, and next to the symptom note down what you have been doing that day.  When you have a couple of pages of entries, you may start to see a pattern (repeat activities that precede a symptom) emerging that will help you identify your triggers.

Example

Symptom: Face rash   

Prior activities: Walked in the sun for half an hour. Ate cheese pizza. Had an emotional upset (anger)