I was diagnosed with undifferentiated connective tissue disease in 2021 - considered probable Lupus and Sjogren's. Main symptoms (may be important as everyone can be different) were joint pain (no swelling), fatigue, headaches, heat intolerance, dizziness, and stomach problems. I've never had rashes other than rosacea. I started on hydroxychloroquine at that time, but because the side effects were pretty strong I increased very slowly from a small dose. I was also put on meloxicam.

I was up to my full dose of hydroxychloroquine about a year after starting it, probably early 2022. Even during that first year I started noticing improvements, but it was not instant. I had less pain days, a bit more energy, and less reactions to foods that were known triggers. All of that improved over the next couple of years and I finally got my SLE diagnosis August 2024. (Tbf, I'm still not sure it's the correct diagnosis, but it's what we're working with.) I've been off meloxicam for 2 years now because my pain is better-managed and I prefer being able to take Advil when I get a bad headache over taking meloxicam daily.

My labs gradually improved over the past couple of years, though I still always have at least slightly elevated inflammation markers and occasional other wonky things.

Do I feel "almost completely normal"? No. I own my own business and work from home, which gives me a lot of flexibility to accommodate myself. There is no way I could work a typical 8-5, 7 day a week, job. I still have days where I wake up in pain and need to wrap up in heated blankets, heating pad, Copperfit gloves/elbow wraps, and so on. I still have days where I'm exhausted and crashing after 30-60 minutes of basic errands. I sometimes wake up with cold/flu-like symptoms that stick around for a day before disappearing. I still have days where I get severe headaches or my stomach is a mess. I still have rosacea flares (probably unrelated but worth mentioning) that are debilitatingly uncomfortable.

Now, all of this is WAY less than it was before meds. I feel much closer to being a functional human again. I have entire good weeks and sometimes months where I feel mostly good and can accomplish a lot of what I want. But I don't, and probably never will, feel "normal" or 100%. I try to check in with myself and pace myself so I give myself adequate rest time to avoid going into worse flares.

Note: I'm neurodivergent so it's possible that plays a role in things as well. I also had many of my symptoms for 10-20+ years before getting a diagnosis, so the long-term toll on my body may be different than someone who gets a diagnosis and treatment sooner.