"I live with Sjogren's Syndrome every day, and I have continued to make a career and make the best life out of it, which isn't always easy" - Venus Williams

Venus Williams, one of the greatest women's tennis players in history, recently opened up about her struggles with autoimmune disease Sjogren's Syndrome.

The 42-year-old was diagnosed with Sjogren's Syndrome in 2011. She withdrew before her second-round match at that year's US Open against Sabine Lisicki after learning of her affliction with the autoimmune disease that causes fatigue, muscle and joint pain.

Williams returned to the tour after a sabbatical but has struggled to be her dominant self since then. Currently ranked 571st in the singles rankings, the former World No. 1 and seven-time Major champion hasn't been in action for almost a year.

She recently spoke in detail about her battle with Sjogren's Syndrome and how she has learnt to live with it.

"In 2011, I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease called Sjogren's Syndrome," said Williams. "I live with Sjogren's Syndrome every day, and I have continued to find it find a way to make a life and make a career and make the best life out of it, which isn't always easy, but that's a part of the challenge."

Venus Williams also spoke about the differences between Sjogren's Syndrome and other autoimmune diseases:

"Some of the hallmark symptoms of Sjogren's Syndrome is dry eyes and dry mouth, so that's one of the differentiators between Sjogren's and lots of other autoimmune diseases. With autoimmune diseases some of the typical symptoms are joint pain and fatigue, so those are symptoms you can also get with Sjogren's Syndrome."

The 42-year-old further elaborated on how the autoimmune disease has impacted her.

"Those extra special friends that come along with it are dry eyes and dry mouth," Venus Williams said. "It's very difficult for me to wear contact lenses. My eyes are just too dry to wear those. It can be very uncomfortable to the point where you would get mouth sores so as you can see an extreme level of Sjogren's Syndrome or extreme flare-up, or extreme symptoms can start to really affect your life."

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"I wasn't able to play tennis any more" - Venus Williams on her battle with Sjogren's Syndrome

Day Three: The Championships - Wimbledon 2021

Venus Williams didn't play tennis for nine months after she was first diagnosed with Sjogren's Syndrome. In the recent video, she reflected on the "frustrating" period of her life and how she struggled to play her best tennis.

"Everyone's life is affected in different ways with autoimmune diseases," she said. "For me, it really obviously affected my work and my profession. I wasn't able to play tennis anymore, and I was out of the game for maybe nine months. I also had challenges playing my best tennis, so of course that was frustrating especially when you have a high expectation of yourself."

Williams also opened up on the changes to her daily routine - like getting more sleep and not reading emails at night - to combat the disease and her stress levels.

"It's very frustrating especially when you are experiencing limits and you can't do everything that you wanted to do before," she said. "I had to learn how to pace myself so that was important. My life doesn't involve a lot of pacing but you know there are certain things that I have to do - I really should get sleep. I've learned how to like not read emails at night."

She went on to speak about how she had to learn and relearn a lot of things.

"I've made some different rules for myself to hopefully help my stress level," said Venus Williams. "I don't think I follow those rules the way I should, but I'm working on it. Especially in the beginning, I really had to learn how to rest. I think there were points where I would just push myself so much I would literally crash and couldn't get up. So I had to learn how to stop doing that."

Venus Williams elaborated on the "simple" things she couldn't do - like dressing up - which most people take for granted.

"I couldn't get out of bed, so I think there's certain people obviously you can have so much joint pain that it's very difficult to dress yourself. So those are challenges that as an adult you want to be able to dress yourself those are simple things that we take for granted in life," she said.

Williams emphasized the importance of support from family and close friends.

"It's important for your close family and for your family members to support you. That's extremely important because living with an autoimmune disease or chronic illness you look fine, but you aren't fine," she said.

The 42-year-old is expected to return to action this season, but will not compete at the upcoming Wimbledon Championships.