With Grace and Grit - Life with Chronic Illness
Chronic illness often includes chronic exhaustion – and it’s more than just fatigue. Here are 10 practical tips for banishing the physical and emotional burnout from chronic illness.
Nearly everyone experiences burnout at some point. Marked by physical and/or emotional stress, it can affect our health, our sense of wellbeing, and our ability to function in productive way.
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Our journey with chronic illness is full of surprises. One of them is that we may not always feel “sick”. That’s a good thing, right? So why do we feel guilty for feeling good? And what can we do about it?
If you’re living with a chronic condition, you’re no stranger to guilt. There are many reasons why we feel guilty for being chronically ill.
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Chances are you’ve taken the time to create a household budget. But have you created a budget for your time and and your energy? This is especially important if you’re chronically ill.
If you’ve found yourself at a crossroads over the past year or so, you aren’t alone. We’ve all been affected by the pandemic – even if we were fortunate enough not to contract the virus. It changed our lives.
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It can be hard to have a positive outlook when you’re chronically ill. If you’ve tried to cultivate a more optimistic version of yourself – but find that you feel worse, there are a good few reasons why.
We’ve been in the throes of a positivity movement for years. If you’ve tried to cultivate a more optimistic version of yourself, you may have noticed that your efforts can leave you feeling worse. You’re not alone. There are reasons why you might be doing yourself more harm than good.
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Body image and chronic illness: For many of us, it’s impossible to think of one without being reminded of the other. Here’s why – and what you can do about it.
Why does my body hate me? I’ve asked myself that question. So many times. A journey with chronic illness is as much an emotional one as a physical one. And it’s almost always accompanied by a feeling that our body has betrayed us. Logically, we know that our body doesn’t hate us – but it can feel that way.
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No one is immune from FOMO. But if you are chronically ill, the “Fear of Missing Out” is a familiar condition. Let’s talk about JOMO instead! I want to share just a few of the reasons why there is joy in missing out.
There they are. The blissfully happy people on social media! Relishing an Instagram-worthy dinner and cocktails with a group of friends. Sunning themselves on a pristine beach. Sharing photos from a trip to an obscure, unspoiled postcard-perfect destination.
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Having a life-changing illness forces us to cope with a constant state of uncertainty. I have three crucial pieces of advice for living with a serious illness. It’s the best advice that no one ever gave me, and I want to share it with you.
I celebrated a pretty big milestone this week. My fifteenth birthday. Technically it’s a “rebirth” day because fifteen years ago I received a stem cell transplant that saved my life and ultimately cured me of an aggressive form of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a cancer of the lymphatic system.
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Have you ever heard the expression “eating your emotions”? Emotional eating isn’t simply about what you’re consuming. In fact, it’s more about the reasons why you’re doing it.
I’ve had chocolate cake three days in a row. And more than one piece per day. But it’s not just any chocolate cake. It’s a heavenly marriage of buttercream frosting laced with crushed Oreo cookies thickly slathered between layers of moist cake. Did I mention that it’s crowned with chocolate ganache?
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Ready to part with all of the stuff that you don’t need? Don’t make it harder than it needs to be. Here’s the easiest way to declutter when you’re chronically ill.
There are bones on my dining room table. One is a humerus, I think. Or is it a tibia? In either case, they look like clutter to me. But I can’t get rid of them.
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Are you overwhelmed by all of your stuff? If you’re ready to simplify but not sure where to start, I have what you need: a simple plan for decluttering.
I’d be lying if I said I own too much stuff. Because the truth is that it owns me. Our stuff is like that, isn’t it? We allow it – we actually invite it – into our homes. And we coexist quite happily until we just don’t need each other anymore. But like a bad relationship that we just can’t bring ourselves to end, we hang onto it.
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Getting rid of clutter. Everybody’s doing it. But would you believe me if I told you to stop wasting your time decluttering?
Why? Because when you’re chronically ill, you can’t afford to part with your energy. Also, you’re probably doing it wrong.
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In spite of (or maybe because of) the roller-coaster year we’ve had, I’ve learned life-changing lessons from living with chronic illness – and have emerged stronger.
Self-reflection. It’s a good thing, right? And if ever there was plenty of time for wholehearted soul-searching, it was 2020. But damn, this year needs to be over.
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Living with a chronic illness can predispose us to negative self-talk. It can be hard to prevent our limitations – real and perceived – from changing how we see and value ourselves.
I don’t know anyone who claims to be immune to the potential ravages of negative self-talk. We all do it – although not necessarily to the same degree. Self-doubt, self-loathing, self-consciousness, self-deprecation – I could go on. But I’m guessing you know exactly what I’m talking about.
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Pets enrich our lives, and there’s a proven connection between pets and our health. But do you know the science behind it?
It occurred to me that for the past thirty years I’ve never been without a pet. From the sweet brown tabby cat I adopted from a shelter in 1990 to our current trio of furry companions, animals have been a constant in my life.
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Anger is often a mask for grief. It’s okay to be angry when you’re chronically ill. Once you acknowledge it you can find effective ways to cope so that you can live well.
There are moments – and not just a few – when I recognize that words are the way to the soul. Sometimes, a chain of simple words are tethered together so perfectly that they are extraordinarily profound.
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