GM 
! 4-A Sister Club Non-profit organization here in Lafayette, Louisiana would like to spotlight our Lupus Warrior of the week. Meet Evangelist Crystal D Bell, if she could think back about her first undiagnosed symptom of lupus, it would be June 2013; she was awakened during the night with this horrible itch all over her body, for nearly two weeks, all she did was soak in oatmeal baths and using any and every home remedy or regiment that was suggested to her. Growing up as a young kid with chronic asthma she felt the need to mention that to her doctor so he instantly diagnosed her with asthma of the skin lol little did he know.
Well, she was told use this and use that, don’t use this and don’t use that; she was miserable!
For years her calves were so beautiful and toned from wearing heels everyday to work and stilettos to sing and shout in ( I’m an Evangelist in the ministry and been singing since age 11) but, at one point she would scratch her legs so much until they would bleed and swell.
Fast forward to 2014, one week before what once was the biggest day of her life, she developed a dark ring on her arm and a rash across the bridge of her nose and across both cheeks.
Crystal was like OH MY GOD! The dress was sleeveless so what was I suppose to do with this she said, I couldn’t walk down the aisle with what seemed to be a big black ashy ring on my arm.
She called the best seamstress in the world, (she was a life saver.
Showed the gown to Ms Delores Darby and simply showed her the unwelcomed bruise on her arm well, needless to say, no one ever knew about the bruise. Even though she fixed the issue with her arm, not even makeup could cover the rash on her face.
As time passed her body was being invaded by something foreign; hair began thinning, joints would ache like crazy and constant doctor visits from being so tired all the time. She stopped wearing perfumes and lotions because thought it would cause her to itch as well.
Constant fatigue plagued her body, pain in joints and her skin darkened to the point where even in the hot and humid Louisiana weather, wore long sleeved shirts and pants daily to cover up the discoloration to avoid the stares of people.
In 2018 after all the test, she was finally diagnosed with LUPUS, didn’t want to believe it there it was in plain BLACK & WHITE! This has been a long tedious journey but she so blessed to have the best family support; parents, kids and grandkids along with her fiancée, aunts & cousins and friends also the best medical support team ever.