Life Experiences and Advice for Living with chronically Ridiculous illnesses
In the 19th century, doctors were likely to write off most symptoms women suffered as hysteria, “exaggerated emotion or excitement.” Less has changed from those days than you might think. Sexism of our society still profoundly influences how women with chronic illness are treated by their doctors and their friends, family, and colleagues. My…
Note: I use able-bodied and healthy interchangeably as well as chronically ill and disabled interchangeably, but there are differences. As humans, we all have limitations. We can only go so long without sleep, rest, food, and water. We can only bear so much psychological stress. To have these limitations is to be human. Just because…
I’ve had so many terrible things said to me because of my chronic illness. “It is your fault you feel like this.” “If you try hard enough/ do more you won’t still be sick.” “If you just prayed harder god wouldn’t still let you be sick.” Needless to say, chronic illness has made for a difficult…
Pokemon Go is a new game that came out this past week and has already become a sensation with 15 million downloads already. The game encourages players to get out, get up, and get moving. The more a player walks around, the more gear they get, Pokemon they catch, the faster they level up, and…
Everyone is freaking out about opiate overdose- what about the major problem no one is talking about? Prescription overdose has been in the spotlight lately, which makes sense. Drug overdoses have now surpassed automobile overdoses as the leading cause of accidental death. What doesn’t make sense is that because of this spotlight chronic pain patients are…
Dear Healthy People, There are a lot of articles out there about what you should stop saying to sick people. Here are some things healthy people need to think about before they say because they are hurtful. Please stop saying and doing the following. You are being insensitive and ignorant. I try so hard to…
People should not demand someone with a disability to look at themselves in whatever way you see fit. Don’t complain that they talk about their illness too much. My disability does not define me, but it has shaped who I am. I have to deal with it every single day; it is a part of my life and I will talk about it if I want to.
Dating with a chronic illness can complicate things. Here are the 7 types of people I’ve run into: 1. The One Who Ignores Your Illness A lot of people have no idea how to interact with someone with a disability. While some people may attack the issues you face head on, these people avoid the…
Like a lot of people with Ehler’s Danlos III, I have back problems and hip problems. In the past, I have received epidurals for the pain and the injections have been lifesavers. This time my body decided to be uncooperative. The first injection went fine, but as they began the second injection Cerebral Spinal Fluid…
Having Cancer is News to Me Last week I was diagnosed with cancer by an ultrasound technician before the test even began. I sat down and she sais, “so we are looking at the state of your thyroid cancer.” As far as I knew I was just having a thyroid nodule checked. I was nervous,…