Chronic Rants

There are so many big, obvious ways that chronic illness can stop us from doing the things that make us feel like ourselves. Like not being able to work or having to give up a favorite form of exercise. But then there are the smaller things that most people don’t think about. And lately those have been bugging the hell out of me.

Don’t get me wrong. Not being able to work really sucks. And I should have a dog. I adore dogs. I dog sit a lot. And yet, I can’t manage having a dog every day, so no dog for me. And yeah, that sucks. Then there are things like no longer being able to dance. I miss that. And I wonder if I get married one day, will I not even be able to dance at my own wedding? That idea is so sad that I don’t like to think about it, and get it comes to mind anyway. Then again, will I even be able to have a big wedding? My guess is that my adrenals wouldn’t be able to manage that. Those are big things. Then there are smaller things.

Like I was telling a friend about how I hadn’t kissed anyone in 6 months. He suggested that if I’m on a date with someone I like then I should just go for it. But I pointed out the big problem: gluten. I can’t kiss someone who has eaten or drunk gluten. Or who is wearing lipstick or chapstick that might have gluten in it. So I have to tell them, which can be awkward on a first or second date. Like, there was the woman I mentioned it to on the first date. She was all done, with nice clothes, makeup, lipstick. On our second date she was dressed up with nice clothes and makeup, but no lipstick. And when we ate dinner, she ordered hers gluten-free also. Ah hah! Clues! And yes, we kissed that night. More recently I went out with someone and managed to bring it up. But then he ate gluten with dinner anyway. So obviously, no kissing there. I used to make the first move all the time. In fact, the first few people I kissed I had made the first move. I can’t do that anymore, not unless I know they are gluten-free. And that totally sucks. I can’t simply be me.

And there’s the money thing. I want to try and earn some money. Not only does my health not allow me to do much, but even when I can work a little bit, there’s the issue that my government benefits prevent me from earning a little money. I need to either earn enough to get off of benefits, or earn nothing at all. Because if I earn $1000, I will keep about $250 and the rest will get eaten up by a reduction in benefits. And that sucks.

I want to play with the kids in my life. I am auntie to 11 wonderful kids, and I’m too tired to do much with them. I have managed to host a couple of sleepovers, but even those were exhausting. I want to babysit more, chase after them, take them for outings. And it hurts that I can’t do that.

There’s a list of projects sitting next to me. Things I really want to do, if only I could manage to do them. If only I had more good hours in the day. These are the things that make me feel like me. I do enough to hold onto my sense of self, but there’s so much more I want to do. There’s so much my health won’t allow me to do.

I think about the kinds of things I have done over the years, back when I was healthier. I think about the kinds of things I would like to do now. I want to go out for drinks with friends in the evening, go out dancing, ride a bicycle. But mostly I want to act naturally, follow my instincts, and just be myself. And I find it incredibly frustrating that I can’t do that basic thing: just be me.