A real look into life with a body and brain that don’t always cooperate — how stress physically worsens symptoms, what it’s like living with an illness that’s invisible or misdiagnosed, and the grief that comes with a body and life you didn’t choose.
This is the two-way link between chronic illness and trauma: illness that causes trauma, and trauma that worsens illness. No toxic positivity, just the real, messy middle of it.
I’ve sat on the couch with notes scattered around me, half-finished symptom logs open, medication lists in two different places, and that sinking feeling in my chest that said, I cannot keep doing this shit. Symptom tracking for chronic illness can sound simple when people talk about it online. In real life, it can feel…
It’s the most exhausting game of pretend you never asked to play. You’re standing in the middle of a grocery aisle, or maybe at a family BBQ, and on the outside, you look “fine”. You’ve brushed your hair, you’re standing upright, and you might even…
There is a specific kind of silence that happens when you’re chronically ill but look “fine.” It’s the silence of people watching you struggle and deciding you’re just lazy. It’s the sharp, jagged edge of a family member calling you “useless” because you can’t make…
Being stuck at home, whether it’s chronic illness, trauma recovery, or just your body saying “nope, not today”, can feel like being invisible. You watch the world move on through a screen while you’re here, alone, wondering if anyone actually remembers you exist. And then…
When you’re flared up, exhausted, or running on fumes, the idea of “finding joy” feels like someone telling you to just smile more. It’s not that simple when your body is screaming, your brain is foggy, and getting off the couch feels like climbing Everest.…
You know that feeling when you leave a doctor’s office feeling smaller, more confused, and somehow less sure about your own body than when you walked in after yet another round of medical gaslighting examples playing out in real time? When you’re convinced something’s wrong,…
I spent most of my life wondering if I was losing my mind. Not in the dramatic, cinematic way. In the quiet, insidious way that happens when every doctor you see tells you there’s nothing wrong, while your body is literally falling apart. When you…
Spoonie goal setting can feel damn near impossible when you’re three days into a flare and can barely manage a shower. January arrives every year with the same bloody energy, New Year, New Me, and if you’re chronically ill, neurodivergent, or just burnt out from…
Nobody tells you this part: chronic illness turns your life into constant negotiation. With your body. With your calendar. With other people’s expectations. With your own inner critic. And if you’ve ever wished you had a simple way to explain why you can’t “just push…