Why this exists
"Every new doctor looked at the most recent results and started over. Nobody ever looked at the whole picture."
My sister had lupus, Sjögren's, scleroderma, and pulmonary fibrosis. The fibrosis killed her. My brother has Addison's, Type 1 diabetes, hypothyroidism — at 40, a foot sore led to amputation, then a stroke, then partial paralysis. I grew up watching autoimmune disease take everything from the people I loved.
Then my symptoms started. Joint pain, fatigue, a positive ANA. I spent years seeing doctors who told me I was imagining it. One suggested manic depression. Another walked out and told her assistant to "get rid of me." Eventually someone actually looked at everything — the trends, the family history, the full picture — and finally gave me a diagnosis.
Six months later, he retired. The new doctor looked at my current labs, said they were normal, and concluded there was nothing wrong. Starting over. Again.
I built Advocate because I was tired of it. Tired of starting over. Tired of handing doctors a pile of records they'd glance at and ignore. Tired of knowing more about my own situation than anyone treating me — and still not being able to make them see it.
If that sounds familiar, this is for you.
— Jeff Bright, Founder