Sara Gorman was diagnosed with systemic lupus at the age of 26. Determined not to let lupus rewrite her plans for the future, she fought to maintain her demanding work schedule, busy social life, and invincible attitude. But after four years of running her body into the ground, she realized she was fighting life, not living it. Committed to working with the disease rather than against it, she made it her top priority to start living well, despite lupus. Her book, "Despite Lupus: How to Live Well with a Chronic Illness", details the steps it took to reach that goal. Letting go of her career, postponing plans for pregnancy, and cutting off her hair (or what she had left) are just a few of the monumental steps she took to reach her goal of living well, despite lupus.A native of Indiana and graduate of the University of Notre Dame, Sara resides in Alexandria, Virginia with her husband, two young daughters and pug dog. She continues to blog about living well with a chronic illness at www.despitelupus.com. In the spring of 2012, Sara launched Sara Gorman's Pillbags - fun, fashionable bags for medication. The stylish bags can be found at retail stores across the country and at www.pillfold.com.