Long COVID May Have Triggered Your Sjögren's Disease

If you're living with long COVID, I need you to hear this. Your fatigue, dry mouth, joint pain, and brain fog may not just be long COVID. I'm now looking at peer-reviewed evidence that the same virus also triggered changes in your salivary glands and immune system that look exactly like Sjögren's disease, and most people have no idea because no one tested them for it. Free Lab Conversation Guide: https://immuneconfidentinstitute.com/... IC Indicator Quiz (free, 2 min): https://immuneconfidentinstitute.com/... Medical Appointment Workbook (free): https://www.drkarawada.com/med-workbo... In this video: I walk you through a 2023 JCI Insight study where salivary gland biopsies from people who had just recovered from COVID, with no prior autoimmune diagnosis, looked indistinguishable from Sjögren's disease under the microscope. I explain how that same study found significantly elevated anti-SSA and anti-SSB antibodies, the exact ones I test for in Sjögren's disease, in COVID patients compared to healthy controls. I share the Massachusetts community study that found people with a post-COVID condition were four times more likely to later be diagnosed with Sjögren's disease. I tell you why I worry Sjögren's is being written off as "just long COVID," and how that adds to a diagnostic delay I already see averaging three to six years. I leave you with three specific things you can do this week to track your symptoms and advocate for a proper autoimmune workup. READY TO WORK WITH DR. KARA DIRECTLY? If you're ready to work with someone who looks at the whole terrain, not just one piece, Dr. Kara offers telehealth appointments in WI, AL, OH, MO, TX, KY, WA, GA, IL, PA, FL, WV, CO, MD, IN, UT, MI, TN, NV, NJ, MT, NC, LA, ID, CT, or AZ. New patient care: https://www.drkarawada.com/new-patien... State not listed? Join the waitlist: https://www.drkarawada.com/waitlist STRONGER WITH SJOGREN'S MEMBERSHIP Monthly live access to Dr. Kara, a moderated peer community, and an All Access Pass to the 5th Annual Virtual Sjögren's Summit this July, built specifically for women navigating Sjögren's. Comment SWS below and we'll send you all the details. Learn more: https://www.drkarawada.com/stronger JOIN THE 5TH ANNUAL SJOGREN'S SUMMIT, Registration Now Open Stronger With Sjögren's: Thriving in the New Era of Treatment & Self-Management Join Dr. Kara Wada and world-class experts this July, the 16th through the 18th, for the only free virtual patient education event focused entirely on Sjögren's disease. Free to attend live. Register now: https://www.sjogrenssummit.com/register FREE RESOURCES Lab Conversation Guide (free PDF): https://immuneconfidentinstitute.com/... IC Indicator Quiz (free, 2 min): https://immuneconfidentinstitute.com/... Medical Appointment Workbook (free): https://www.drkarawada.com/med-workbo... IMMUNE CONFIDENT RESOURCES Precision Allergy Shots (ILIT): https://www.drkarawada.com/immunotherapy JOIN THE COMMUNITY Becoming Immune Confident Community (FB):   / crunchyallergist   Success with Sjogren's Sisterhood (FB):   / successwithsjogrens   STAY CONNECTED Podcast: https://www.drkarawada.com/podcast Blog: https://www.drkarawada.com/blog Dr. Kara's Favorites: https://www.drkarawada.com/store WATCH NEXT (Previous Videos) Sjögren's Disease Explained:    / @drkarawada   MCAS & Histamine Deep Dives:    / @drkarawada   Allergy & Immune Health:    / @drkarawada   SOCIAL MEDIA LinkedIn:   / karawadamd   Instagram:   / drkarawada   Podcast IG:   / becomingimmuneconfident   Facebook:   / karawadamd   Threads: https://www.threads.com/@immuneconfid... TikTok:   / immuneconfidentmd   STUDY REFERENCED IN THIS VIDEO Shen et al., Evidence of a Sjögren's disease-like phenotype following COVID-19 in mice and humans. JCI Insight, 2023. https://insight.jci.org/articles/view... CHAPTERS 01:35 How the COVID virus targets your salivary glands 02:05 The 2023 JCI Insight biopsy study that looked like Sjögren's 04:22 Anti-SSA and anti-SSB antibodies showing up after COVID 04:54 What long COVID autoantibodies predict about lasting fatigue 05:52 Population data, four times higher Sjögren's risk after COVID 06:59 What this research does and does not prove 07:32 Why a Sjögren's diagnosis still takes three to six years 08:28 Step one, track your symptoms with specificity 09:10 Step two, ask specifically about Sjögren's and SSA, SSB testing 10:09 Step three, do not accept that it is just long COVID 11:21 The Virtual Sjögren's Summit this July 12:04 What you are feeling is real, and it is not your fault