“In July 2012, after many health problems, I found out that I had Lupus. I had been feeling weak, I was very thin, my red blood cells and platelets were very low, and I was diagnosed with lupus nephritis. In sum, it was all bad. I started taking the traditional medications - corticosteroids, cyclophosphamide, reuquinol, bactrim. A cocktail of drugs. I was very swollen due to the corticoids, but gradually I got better physically, and my exams got better too. After five cyclophosphamide sessions, my doctor asked me to take azathioprine, but that drug made me very sick. I didn’t feel well with it, I had nausea, a strange taste in my mouth. I decided to stop and stay only with the corticoid and reuquinol. I decided to do some research, and on Facebook I found a multiple sclerosis group in which the patients followed a treatment with high doses of vitamin D. They seemed to have excellent results, with regression of the disease. I read testimonials of people who were recovering their movements and sight. I joined the group and asked about lupus. There were a few people in there with the disease, and they helped me with my doubts. I asked my rheumatologist about high doses of vitamin D and she said she was against it, so I kept on taking reuquinol and corticosteroids. Then I got a cold. The doctor explained to me that I had to take antibiotics, even for a simple cold, even if I didn’t have a fever. She said that infections activate the lupus, and I had to take the antibiotics to prevent it. I did not want to take so many drugs for the rest of my life, and this motivated me to seek treatment with vitamin D. I got the courage to call Dr. Coimbra’s clinic. In August of 2013 I had an appointment with Dr. Sergio Menendez, an excellent doctor, very attentive. The appointment lasted about 2 hours. But I still couldn’t find the courage to take the recommended dose of 40,000 IU per day. I started taking 10,000 IU instead, and soon realized that my health was improving. I was not getting colds so easily anymore, and I was able to lower my doses of corticoids and reuquinol. But just a couple of months later, in October of 2013, I found out that I had developed cataracts due to the use of corticoids. The rheumatologist suspended the medication, and after two months without the corticoids, my joints started to become stiff. I remembered that I had lupus! Finally, in January of 2014 I decided to start taking the recommended dose of 40,000 IU a day of vitamin D. After a month, the pain in my joints had completely disappeared. I went to a new appointment with Dr. Menendez, and based on my tests he increased my dose to 50,000 IU. Today, I follow all the treatment recommendations; I drink 2.5 liters of liquids a day, avoid eating foods with too much calcium, and I have a completely normal life. The stiffness on my joints have disappeared, my kidneys work perfectly, I have no disease symptoms and my exams are excellent. Sometimes I have a cold, but I can get rid of it with lemon and propolis tea, I do not need antibiotics. I was able to discontinue all conventional medications, my only treatment now is vitamin D. Although my rheumatologist doesn’t approve of my choice, she monitors all my exams. I think I’m proving to her that vitamin D works! Even though this treatment has not yet been accepted and disseminated by traditional doctors, I believe that many people can benefit from it."