Sjögren's Syndrome

It is as though the inner juice has run dry. The eyes burn because the tears are missing. The mouth is dry, the tongue sticks to the palate, swallowing becomes an effort. The mucous membranes are brittle, speaking is tiring, eating joyless. Often a fatigue accompanies this, one that cannot be slept away — an exhaustion that sits deeper than the body would suggest. And sometimes rheumatism joins it, or lupus, or another autoimmune reaction, as though the whole system were working against itself.