Autoimmune Flares: What Causes Them and How to Manage Them

When your autoimmune flares, sudden worsening of symptoms in autoimmune diseases caused by the immune system mistakenly attacking healthy tissue. Also known as disease flares, they can turn a stable condition into a crisis overnight—fatigue, pain, swelling, and fever can hit hard and fast. This isn’t just a bad day. It’s your immune system going rogue, and it’s happening to millions with rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, Crohn’s, psoriasis, and other autoimmune conditions.

What triggers these flares? Stress, infections, certain medications, even changes in weather can spark them. But one of the biggest culprits is the immune system’s own fire—especially when it’s fueled by proteins like TNF alpha, a signaling protein that drives inflammation in autoimmune diseases. That’s where TNF inhibitors, biologic drugs designed to block TNF alpha and calm the immune response come in. Drugs like adalimumab and infliximab don’t cure the disease, but they can stop flares before they start—or at least make them bearable. Still, they’re not risk-free. These drugs lower your body’s ability to fight infections, so a simple cold can turn serious.

Managing flares isn’t just about drugs. It’s about tracking patterns. Did your flare happen after skipping sleep? After a big life event? After switching generic meds? The same way you’d track your blood sugar or blood pressure, you need to track your symptoms. Some people use apps, others keep journals. Either way, knowing your triggers helps you avoid them—or at least prepare. And when flares do happen, knowing how to respond matters. Do you reach for an NSAID? Call your doctor? Adjust your biologic dose? These decisions aren’t made in a vacuum. They depend on your specific disease, your meds, your history.

You’ll find posts here that dig into how autoimmune flares connect to everything from drug interactions to storage of controlled meds, from patient adherence to the real-world data behind treatment safety. Some posts explain why switching generics can be risky for people on narrow therapeutic index drugs—like those used in autoimmune conditions. Others break down how biologics like TNF inhibitors work, and why some patients respond while others don’t. There’s even guidance on how to use digital tools to track symptoms and medication timing, so you can spot flare patterns before they hit.

This isn’t theory. It’s what people live with every day. And the more you understand what’s happening inside your body, the better you can work with your care team to keep flares under control—before they control you.