“You’re Making Up Symptoms,” They Laughed—Until the Specialist’s Report Came Back.

understand. I thought if I couldn’t see it, it wasn’t real.”

“That,” Dr. Parker said sharply, “is exactly the problem.”

My mother swung the opposite direction—overcompensating like guilt was a caffeine rush. She showed up with stacks of printouts. “Boston has a specialist, and I joined three lupus groups online and—”

“Mom,” I’d say, keeping my voice steady,continue reading …