Having a positive outlook will not cure your chronic pain, that's toxic positivity. At best, it will help you to survive your pain, at worst it will put you into denial about your situation and keep you from getting appropriate treatment. 

How chronic pain is brushed away by toxic positivity

Toxic positivity is now the premier coping mechanism touted for dealing with chronic pain. Doctors have decided that pain is all in the attitude, and if someone is in pain, they’re not being optimistic enough. This has horrifying results for people in pain whose doctors are blaming them for their own suffering, and telling them…Continue reading How chronic pain is brushed away by toxic positivity

How the Ugly Laws were designed to keep disabled people out of sight

Today first takes us to the lovely Portland Oregon where we’re learning about “The Ugly Laws” that were created to stop disabled people from being seen in public and “obstructing the roadways.” For people with visible disabilities, this history will not sound surprising, considering how entitled the public feels to comment on the way disability…Continue reading How the Ugly Laws were designed to keep disabled people out of sight

Wellness culture preys on women with chronic illness who have been rejected by the sexist medical system. Wellness culture convinces women that they can cure their diseases if they just try hard enough, and that is toxic.

How wellness culture is toxic for people with chronic illness

Wellness culture is toxic for people with chronic illness and chronic pain, and many chronic illness blogs and influencers get sucked into the culture and spread it with the best of intentions. They arrive so excited to talk about their illness, but slowly over time, they realize that chronic illness is a very niche topic…Continue reading How wellness culture is toxic for people with chronic illness

Disabled Women in History: Frida Kahlo and life with chronic pain

This week’s disabled woman in history features the incomparable Frida Kahlo who lived with chronic pain. From the beginning of her life to the end, Frida was a force. I enjoyed every single minute of my research on her. I felt her physical pain, her emotional sorrows, and her triumphs. Frida was someone with lots…Continue reading Disabled Women in History: Frida Kahlo and life with chronic pain

Florence Nightingale is famous for her nursing during the Crimean War, but many don't know she also a disability and spent much of her life bedridden. Was her illness Fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, or Myalgic Encephalitis?

Disabled Women in History: Florence Nightingale and Fibromyalgia

Florence Nightingale and Fibromyalgia seem like an unusual parring, but May is Fibromyalgia Awareness Month and it’s time to raise awareness of Florences’ Fibromyalgia like symptoms that disabled her for most of her life. She was a hero and inspiration to many women through nursing, but no matter how hard she worked, doctors still said…Continue reading Disabled Women in History: Florence Nightingale and Fibromyalgia

Rosemary Kennedy was Rose and Joe Kennedy's oldest daughter. Because of oxygen deprivation when she was born she lived with disability. Her parents, not wanting anyone to find out the Kennedy's had "bad blood" allowed a lobotomy to be performed. This lead Rosemary to be profoundly disabled.

Disabled Women in History: Rosemary Kennedy and the Lobotomy

Today’s story features a Kennedy you may not be familiar with. Rosemary Kennedy was disabled and was President (JFK) Kennedy’s younger sister. This is a hard story to get through. I was reading and taking notes in bed next to my spouse and I kept scoffing, yelling at the book, and writing notes like “THIS…Continue reading Disabled Women in History: Rosemary Kennedy and the Lobotomy

Disabled women in history: Elizabeth Jefferson

Today I have a story with a tragic mystery death, an epic earthquake, slavery, a possible disabled woman, and a founding father. Her badass status is fairly unknown, but I had to include it because it blew my mind I never knew that this woman existed. Her name is Elizabeth Jefferson, and she is Thomas…Continue reading Disabled women in history: Elizabeth Jefferson

There are many parts of coping with chronic illness that people just don't tell you about. Maybe because they're embarrassed, or maybe because they think they're all alone.

What no one tells you about coping with chronic illness

When you get diagnosed with a chronic illness there are some things your doctor will never tell you. Coping with a chronic illness is a complicated topic that even your friends with chronic illness may not approach. Sometimes because it’s not a “polite” topic of conversation, sometimes people think they’re the only one experiencing something,…Continue reading What no one tells you about coping with chronic illness

The devastating impact of Covid 19 on disabled people

Covid and disabled people feel like a topic that has been touched on many times. Somehow though, it feels like the news articles miss the mark. So today I want to talk being disabled in a pandemic. In February 2020, I didn’t know I was disabled. Hard to believe, right? I knew I was in…Continue reading The devastating impact of Covid 19 on disabled people

Losing friends to chronic illness is a frequent occurrence. Sometimes it's because people are afraid, they don't know what to do, or they just don't want to deal with it.

Where did everybody go? Losing friends to chronic illness

Someone once told me that losing friends to chronic illness or disability was not a thing, and if I felt alone it was all my fault. Words failed me. Years later, I have a better response. It struck me that this is what people don’t understand about chronic illness or disability. In their lives, if you…Continue reading Where did everybody go? Losing friends to chronic illness