n response to body shamers, Selena Gomez has declared that she would never become a model and asserted that her lupus medicine was to blame for her weight gain.
The 30-year-old star got candid as she took to a livestream on TikTok on Thursday to take aim at those who have commented on her body.
“[When I’m taking it, I] tend to hold a lot of water weight, and that happens very normally. When I’m off of it, I tend to lose weight,” said Gomez on the video-sharing platform. “I just wanted to say and encourage anyone out there who feels any sort of shame for exactly what they’re going through, and no one knows the real story.”
The singer of Who Says revealed her lupus diagnosis in 2015, when she had to have chemotherapy. Since then, she has publicly denounced body shamers on numerous times. She used TikTok last year to talk about trying to diet and clapped back at anyone who made disparaging remarks about her figure.
Dr Steve Iley, medical director at Bupa, explains what that you need to know about lupus.
What is lupus?
Lupus is a complicated condition; there are different types and people often show different symptoms on different parts of the body. It is often misunderstood by the general public.
The most common type of lupus is systemic lupus erythematosus – or SLE – which is one of the more serious forms of the condition. SLE can exhibit different symptoms and some people will experience them more severely than others. The three most common are fatigue, swollen or painful joints, and skin irritation or rashes, particularly around the hands, wrists or face.
Other symptoms can include a fever, swollen glands, headaches or migraines and stomach pains. These symptoms can also be caused by a number of issues so it is important that you speak to your doctor for a diagnosis.
Other types of lupus will just affect the skin.
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Made in Chelsea TV personality Louise Thompson also has lupus. Discussing her unusual symptoms, Ms Thompson said: “I was just on the bus going to one appointment this morning and when I stood up and started walking to the appointment honestly my knees were in such agony.
“I’ve never experienced anything like it in my life. I’ve always been so able-bodied and so active, exercise has been such a big part of my life and it’s just so rough having to adapt to all of these new medical conditions, so that’s been really tough.
“On top of that and almost worse because I can deal with fatigue, I can deal with skin, I can deal with pain but the neurological symptoms have just still been so unbearable and currently I’m dealing with this never-ending cold. I have mucus coming out of my nose and really bad pain in my ears and I’m not supposed to take anti-inflammatory medication like ibuprofen because of having ulcerative colitis or all of that.”
How can you catch lupus?
SLE is an autoimmune condition, meaning it is not contagious and can’t be passed from one person to another. Instead, it is caused when antibodies from the immune system mistakenly attack healthy cells or organs.
Experts still aren’t entirely certain why this happens but it is widely agreed that there are multiple causes. Some of these are genetic – so if your parents have lupus, it’s more likely that you’ll get it too – while others are in our control. Lots of experts believe that smoking increases your chances of developing the condition.
Lupus can also be affected by changes in hormones, from pregnancy or puberty for example, so it is most prevalent in women of childbearing age.
How can it be treated?
Lupus can generally be diagnosed by blood tests from a doctor.
While there’s no cure for SLE, there are medications available to manage its impact such as anti-inflammatories, or medicines that suppress your immune system. By using these, many people are able to successfully limit the impact it has on their day-to-day lives.
