There are no safe spaces

April 26, 2015

When I started this blog, it was so I could have a place to rant about the frustrations of having chronic illnesses. Over time, it’s morphed a bit, and I’ve covered many chronic illness-related topics from many perspectives. But today it’s time for a good old fashioned rant again.

I was in what I thought was a safe space. I thought it was safe, so I let down my guard. I’m so used to keeping my guard up that I completely forget about it, until I let it down and something proves that I should have kept it up.

Today’s incident was unexpected. I was in a room of people who care about social justice issues. The afternoon was spent talking about what it means to be in an oppressed group, and how to be an ally to an oppressed group. Most of the talk was about racism and sexism, but there was a bit of talk about homophobia, biphobia, and transphobia. I also brought up ableism. Everyone was kind, respectful, and interested in learning. I was asked some great questions by someone who just wanted to understand a bit more about what the disabled community is dealing with. I connected with another person with chronic illness. It was a fantastic afternoon. I had missed most of the event, but at least I’d made it for the end and was feeling more or less ok.

Then it was time for a closing exercise. It involved walking around the room, which I could have done a few hours earlier, but not at that point. At that point I needed to sit. And that’s when I became invisible. Most people avoided looking at me. A few looked, and then looked quickly away. They pretended I wasn’t there. It was horrible. I thought about leaving, but that didn’t feel like the right thing to do. I thought about getting up and participating, but I knew I couldn’t manage it. So I stayed seated. And then later, I cried.

Thankfully there was a friend there, and as people left, I pulled her aside, told her what happened, and cried. I don’t cry often, especially in public. But I was so upset! For once I had let my guard down, and look what happened! No one was mean. No one said anything insensitive. But they acted like I was invisible, and I just couldn’t handle that. Not like that. Not today.

I’m still hurting. I can’t seem to get it off my mind. Plus, I’m dealing with the physical effects: the adrenaline surge left me shaky at first, but I calmed down and ate, and that helped. Still, for someone with adrenal insufficiency, that’s not good. And of course, crying is tiring, even when it’s a short cry. So now I’m drained, but I know I need to wake up early for a doctor appointment tomorrow. Damn!

And I’m just so pissed, because I was having a really nice day! I had wanted to attend this thing for weeks, and I wasn’t sure I’d be able to make it. Even this morning I had my doubts, but I made it and I’d had a really nice time! It was so wonderful until the end. And that just ruined the whole thing. I’m trying to hold onto that good feeling I’d had, but I just can’t seem to do it.

I put up with this kind of bullshit all the time. That’s why I’m so used to keeping my guard up. It feels like I deal with some sort of bullshit every time I leave the house, but this once, for just a short time, I thought I was safe. I’d dealt with the hurdles of getting there (and there were several, both at home and on the short journey) and I’d thought I was safe.

I left feeling sad, frustrated, discouraged, alienated, and mad. I left feeling like there are no safe spaces. My chronic pain support group has been safe with health stuff, but my guard is up for biphobia when I’m there… what if I mention a date with a woman and someone reacts badly? Today’s event was the one space where no sort of -phobia or -ism is tolerated, but being ignored and avoided had the same effect.

Please, someone, prove me wrong. Tell me about a safe space. Or if you need to vent about your own similar experiences, go right ahead. Leave your thoughts in the comments and do your own venting.

I just hope that one day, somehow, some way, I really will find a safe space.

4 Comments | Educating, Expectations, Frustration, Insensitive, Isolation, Limitations, Rants | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by chronicrants

Easy things that aren’t so easy

April 24, 2015

When you have chronic pain, chronic fatigue, and other chronic symptoms, there are some everyday movements and actions that most people assume are easy, but which really aren’t. They’re painful, draining, and sometimes impossible.

I was reminded of this yesterday when my mom called. I told her I was in recovery mode from the activities of the day before. She knew I was resting, but she didn’t seem to understand that just talking on the phone was exhausting. I was supposed to be resting, so I shouldn’t have been talking on the phone, but she thought of it as a low-energy activity. In fairness to my mom, I should have been more clear about my limitations; that’s my responsibility and no one else’s. But it did make me think about how differently we perceive things.

So here are just a few things that others think are easy but which aren’t for me. And of course, it varies from day to day. Some days sitting up is no problem. Others it’s impossible.

  • Sitting up.
  • Cooking.
  • Walking down the street.
  • Walking around my apartment.
  • Keeping my eyes open.
  • Standing up.
  • Breathing.
  • Reading.
  • Eating.
  • Sitting down without letting my body just drop to the sofa/chair/toilet.
  • Talking.
  • Singing.
  • Concentrating on anything.
  • Drinking water.
  • Showering.
  • Watching a movie and following the plot.
  • Typing.
  • Thinking.
  • Moving my hands.
  • Keeping my hands still.

What can you add to this list? Please share your ideas in the comments. Then share this with your family and friends to help raise some awareness.

1 Comment | Educating, Fatigue, Frustration, Limitations, Pain, Rants, Symptoms, Unpredictable | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by chronicrants

What doctors learn from us

April 19, 2015

Most of my doctors work at one of Boston’s teaching hospitals, so I sometimes have a student or intern in the room during my appointments. This past year, there was a fellow, Dr. N, working with the doctor who I see for my sleep problems. The fellow has been really great, and I’m sad that he’s leaving in June when the fellowship ends. Before he leaves for an exciting new position, I wanted to tell him how great he’s been. But he beat me to it!

At my last appointment, I pointed out that I probably wouldn’t see him again, and he looked sad and reached out to shake my hand. Then he said, “I’ve learned a lot from you.” I was completely shocked. He was being very sincere. I could tell that he really meant it, that he had learned a lot from me. I was truly touched.

I hadn’t thought much about him learning from me. I had been thinking about all I wanted to say to him about what a great doctor he is. I still told him, and I gave him specific examples. I asked that he try not to lose his enthusiasm and caring over time.* He blushed deeply and said he wouldn’t. I hope what I said sticks with him. What he said sure sticks with me. But in that moment, as I was thinking about what I wanted to say to him, I was caught off guard and didn’t know how to respond to his statement. Now I’ve had some time to consider it.

I try hard to convince doctors to be open-minded and understanding, but I forgot what an impression I might make on doctors who are completely new to the field. With Dr. N, it wasn’t just about open-mindedness and understanding. That was part of it, but I think I showed him what a chronic illness patient really looks like. I’m guessing he hadn’t seen many yet, and probably few like me who are so proactive no-nonsense. He saw my resilience and determination. He also saw my fear and anxiety. He heard me say I was willing to try anything, but push hard to prioritize non-pharmaceutical options. He saw me work incredibly hard and try many options, even the ones I clearly disliked or feared. He received many emails from me as I tried to improve my health, emails that were always short, to the point, and respectful. He saw me struggling to stay awake in appointments while trying to joke and keep the atmosphere friendly. He heard me state my symptoms methodically, without complaining about them. He heard me emphasize the disabling aspect of my symptoms in an effort to be taken seriously, even when no one expressed doubt, and I’d like to think he understood why I felt the need to do that. In a short time, he saw and heard so much.

I don’t know what exactly Dr. N meant when he said he’d learned a lot from me. I can only guess. But I would like to think that at least one new doctor now understands more about what chronic illness patients deal with, and will show them the compassion and understanding that we all deserve.

*Note: Dr. N really was fantastic. He went out of his way to do everything he could to improve my health. On top of his magnificent efforts and attitude, he was also very knowledgeable without being arrogant. I hope he goes on to be the amazing doctor that I suspect he’ll be.

Leave a Comment » | Educating, Expectations, Fatigue, Healthcare, Kindness, Medication, Raves, Symptoms | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by chronicrants

Where are all of the men spoonies?

April 15, 2015

It’s not a surprise that there are more female voices in the social media spoonie world than male voices. After all, many (most?) autoimmune diseases affect many more women than men, some by ratios of 2:1, others 3:1 or even higher. Women in many western cultures are also raised to discuss their feelings and problems while men in those cultures are raised to pretend their problems don’t exist and to hide their feelings. There are probably other contributing factors, too. In the end, it comes down to a predominantly female space. And this is a problem.

It’s a problem because men often feel the same kinds of isolation that women do, but they see no one like them with whom to discuss it, so that leads to more feelings of isolation. It’s a problem because men need to discuss how they feel just like women do. It’s a problem because we often feel invisible, and without male representatives, men probably feel even more invisible.

And yet, we know there are men in the spoonie world. I’ve seen several on Twitter. There are a couple in my in-person support group, though they’re definitely out-numbered by women.  They’re around, but they’re few and far between, it seems.

I wrote once about wanting to participate in this project. As you can see in the description, the author wants a diversity of writers so that all readers can see themselves represented in the book. The author recently mentioned that all of the stories she has received so far are by women. She needs men to contribute. Where are the men? Why aren’t they participating?

I’ve been fortunate to have some wonderful commenters on this site. Of course, I have no way of knowing the gender of the people who read this blog and who don’t comment. Often the commenters’ genders are clear, though. So far, they’re almost all women. Occasionally someone emails me, and they have been almost entirely women. I sometimes get tweets. Those are mostly from women. Where are the men? Why aren’t they participating here? Yes, a couple times I have written about periods and other things than cisgender men can’t relate to. But the majority of what I write, while it comes from a female perspective, can also be relevant to men. Just like what I write comes from the perspective of someone short, bisexual, and sarcastic, but people who are tall, gay, straight, asexual, and not sarcastic can probably relate to a lot of it. So where are the men?

I don’t know exactly why I see and hear so little from men in the spoonie world, but I’m saying right now that you’re welcome in this space. I suspect you’re welcome in many others, too, but I can only speak for my own. So welcome! I hope you stick around and leave some comments so we can get to know each other. You’re an important part of the spoonie community. I hope you find your place in it.

Leave a Comment » | Isolation, Rants, Support | Tagged: , , | Permalink
Posted by chronicrants

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