We were supposed to have an adventure today. I had it all planned – the directions, the hike, even the post-trip burger indulgence. Lupus had a different plan for today. One that included a 24 hour headache, extreme fatigue, and a nearly non-functional body. So I’m sitting at home – probably giving myself a first degree […]
Category: Chronic Illness
Quick Links:
The Chronic Disappointment of Chronic Illness.
On Being Thankful for My Spouse as a Chronic Illness Sufferer.
What Chronic Illness Has Given Me.
Diagnosis Number Three: Lupus.
The Unfortunate Realities of Life with Chronic Illness(es).
What You Don’t See in My Travel Photos.
The Mental Strain of a Chronic Illness.
Staying Positive in the Face of Progressive Pain.
Blog Roll:
On Being Thankful for My Spouse as a Chronic Illness Sufferer.
Mr. Meena: husband, engineer, son, roller coaster fanatic, birdy daddy extraordinaire. My spouse is all of these things and more. But his most recent title is “carer”. My husband cares for me, but not just in the usual manner of a husband caring for a wife. He is a carer; he takes care of me […]
What Chronic Illness Has Given Me.
I am not grateful for my chronic illnesses, nor will I ever be. They have made my life unbelievably difficult and I would exchange them for a healthier life in a heartbeat. However, since being chronically sick is my current reality, it helps to focus on what chronic illness has given me instead of what it’s […]
Diagnosis Number Three: Lupus.
Three chronic illnesses? Lupus? This is starting to get out of hand. In November of 2015 I began suffering from debilitating pain while living in Germany. This pain, along with other symptoms, has made it very difficult for me to function normally. Going to the doctor in Germany (several doctors, actually) turned out to be less than helpful, […]
The Unfortunate Realities of Life with Chronic Illness.
You know that feeling you experience when you walk into a room and you can’t even begin to remember why you went there? That’s what it feels like to suffer from brain fog due to chronic illness. On a bad day I leave behind a trail of unfinished tasks, deserting them to wander around my apartment […]
What You Don’t See in My Travel Photos.
I became more than a little bit obsessed with traveling shortly after we moved to Germany. Unfortunately, the arrival of my sudden wanderlust coincided with a diagnosis of fibromyalgia. I had already been dealing with various health issues due to early onset osteoarthritis, but figuring out how to deal with chronic pain while living in a […]
The Mental Strain of a Chronic Illness.
Recently I joined a small group called “Deutsche to go” in order to improve my German speaking skills. On the day before my first meeting, I found myself suffering from mental strain in the form of intense dread. I didn’t want to go. Not because I was lazy or too busy, but rather because I’d be […]
Me vs. Medication.
I hate taking medication. I always have, even when I was just a child with a cold (that syrup was nasty). Yet, as someone who has (so far) accumulated two chronic illnesses, taking medication isn’t really optional at this point. I’ve been on so many different medications already: anti-inflammatories, corticosteroids, anti-malarials, anti-depressants, muscle relaxers, and […]
Osteoarthritis Stole My Wedding Ring.
My fingers started swelling for the first time about two and a half months ago. I didn’t really notice at first – I just thought the cold German weather was to blame for my hands being slightly red and uncomfortable. After a long winter day in Munich, Mr. Meena and I returned to our hotel […]
Staying Positive in the Face of Progressive Pain.
In some ways, chronic pain is similar to depression. Both can knock you out, even on your best days, and you never see it coming. I still find it a bit hard to believe that I was only 24 years old when a doctor told me that I had early onset osteoarthritis. You could have […]
