Many African American Women Diagnosed With Lupus Are On A ‘Faith Walk’ – Especially in May

When doctors diagnosed Latrina Willis with lupus in 2011, she knew she had a health care battle on her hands. Now 12 years later, she has come a long way and with her doctor’s guidance can even “wean” herself off some of the medication.

“In the last seven or eight years, I haven’t had any lupus activity in my body,” Willis shared. “I currently take the preferred medicine for it and a steroid which I’m getting off.”

Willis credits God and her mother’s suggestions to incorporate vitamins and herbs into her wellness routine along with the standard treatments prescribed by physicians.

In El Dorado, Arkansas, last weekend, Willis and other lupus survivors were cheered on by the city’s mayor, Paul Choate, who presented a proclamation and members of Women Moving Forward, an exercise group of Black women during the annual Lupus Walk.

May is National Lupus Month. In cities around the country, lupus survivors and their families, friends and supporters are holding walks and informational events to increase awareness and raise funds for research and support services.

African American women are three times more likely to develop lupus than white women and to develop more severe cases and at a younger age.

On its website, the Lupus Foundation of America describes lupus as a “chronic autoimmune disease that can damage any part of the body including skin, joints and organs. The disease attacks the immune system, which fights of viruses, bacteria and other “foreign invaders” like the flu. Autoimmune means your immune system cannot tell the difference between these foreign invaders and your body’s healthy tissues and so it targets the healthy tissue as well. This causes inflammation and pain.”

Willis recalled her struggles and the years of praying for healing and good health.

She explained, “I called my Mama, and she said, ‘The enemy is going to fight you … stand on what God said.’”

Over the year, Willis has stood and last Saturday, she walked with others who know the path she’s traveling.