“There are things I have to do that are hard to imagine my peers doing. Frequent lab work and speciality visits. Trips to the pharmacy for refills. Filling out my pill container for the week. Then there are the more intimate worries: do I feel sick because I didn’t get enough sleep? Why do my…
“In 2014, I was 25 years old living in Westchester County, NY, which is 35 minutes outside of Manhattan. I am a native New Yorker. I was working in Greenwich, CT when I noticed strange things happening to my body. I am now 34 years old living in Los Angeles and operate 2 businesses birthed…
“Being chronically ill (I have Lyme disease, several co-infections, Morgellons, mold toxicity, parasite overgrowth, Candida overgrowth, and Hashimoto’s) has steered me towards life with greater purpose. I am so much more compassionate and have more empathy for others, am gentle with my body, and started my two businesses out of my illnesses. The first business…
“My story is of a girl who lost everything and is now gaining back more than she ever had. I was fourteen when a traumatic event triggered my chronic illnesses. I started experiencing countless symptoms, mostly due to autonomic nervous system dysfunction. The worst symptom of all, was the extreme pain in my chest that…
“My life changed forever on October 29th, 2002. I was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia at the age of six and given a 50 percent chance of survival. Make no mistake, my six- to eight-year-old self was an absolute badass. I handled hospital stays, Hickman infections, blood clots, low blood counts, transfusions, spinal taps and…
“I started to write this piece a few times and found myself coming at it from this inspirational lens. You know, the way that people feel comfortable hearing about chronic illness/cancer- that it is a ‘gift’ , that it taught me about ‘x,y,z’.– And it just didn’t feel authentic. That being said, I didn’t only…