Hi colburn. The drye eyes and mouth sometimes come later so don't wworry about that. In fact it may not come. hugs marilyn

Nanette, hope your not still using Visine as this can be bad for the eyes due to the preservatives. I think even Walgreens has a preservative free brand that you can use.

Dear Becky, Thank you for this site. I have been reading you posts and they are very helpful in a practical way to someone who is new to Sjogren's. I don't get to see the Rheumatologist until the end of Aug and with all the weird symptoms that seem to be new and different daily it gets a little scarey sometimes.

Nanette, the doctors took blood from me and did a ANA, SSA AND SSB. All three came up negative. Not knowing much about this, until I did my research online that I found out that these tests could be negative. Well that raised my spirits. Then I found out about a lip biopsy --- showed positive, what a relief. About your teeth I also spent $5000 on crowns and root canals. What that is happening is your mouth is drying out so bad that the minerals in your saliva are not there anymore. You should get a good rheumatologist and be tested for these three blood tests. Like I said they could come back negative, like me. Then go for the lip biopsy. But that is true do not use Visine anymore. Use something like gentiel gel during the day and refresh PM at night. Warning----if you use refresh PM make sure that is the last thing you do before you go to bed because it is very thick and you will see nothing but a blur. But it works very well. Now as far as insurance before you go selling your house. I don't know if you work or not and I know it's the last resort, but you may want to consider talking to somebody with Medicare or county operations. They might be able to help you out. If you get diagnosed with Sjogren's then you should be covered for sure because you have a disability then. Depending upon what state you live in your laws could be different. But it sure sounds like Sjogren's to me. If you get a prescription, the best thing for your mouth is Salagen for the name brand or else for the generic last four letters are pine. Keep me updated and I hope it will all be good news.

DugEB

Hey there. Im new to this site. Just wondering if there is anyone here from Australia with SS?

Hi,
I am new to this site. My 17yr.old Daughter was just diagnosed with Sjogren's Syndrome. Her systoms are not like some that I have read. She has painful sores in her mouth and tongue. She can feel it coming on. Her lips and face get swollen first,then sores come in mouth side and upper. Then on tongue then in nose. It last for about 7 long days. She can not eat. She does not have any dryness in mouth or eyes. SSA/SSb antibodies are present. Need help. Does anyone have these systoms???

Sorry to hear about your daughter, but this is a very manageble disorder that with the help of your doctor she will still be able to have a normal healthy life. I have gotten sores in my mouth before but not to that extent. I am not sure if the swelling is due to Sjogrens, but I am also new to this hopefully someone might know.

welcome to the new people. Liberian. So sorry your dd is having the sores. Did they put her on any medications at all? Mine certainly are not that bad. have you spoken with dr lately as she needs some help with them. hugs marilyn

THANK YOU SO MUCH, This web site has helped me so much, so much detail and the best part is i've been able to send it to my family in Aussie who have never heard of Sjogren's. xxx