Why Should I Embrace My Pain?
It’s the end of another long day, and you’re stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic, with chores and people waiting for you at home. You blast the horn and squeeze the steering wheel until your knuckles are white, but none of it makes the car in front of you move faster. In fact, your rage doesn’t make […]
The Illusion of the Magic Cure
Created by Kat Woods, an artist and chef who shares her journey about healing from Lyme disease on her blog, HopeHealCook, this cartoon is just one snapshot from life with chronic pain. Unfortunately, there are no shortcuts or magic fixes for chronic pain, and even when we don’t know what to do, we have no […]
Fear: A Spotlight On What Matters To Us Most
“Everyone is afraid of something. We fear things because we value them. We fear losing people because we love them. We fear dying because we value being alive. Don’t wish you didn’t fear anything. All that would mean is that you didn’t feel anything. (Cassandra Clare)” Fear, in the right proportions, is perhaps the greatest […]
Chronic Pain & Sex: The Myth And Shame Of Sexual Normativity
You know that scene in what seems like every movie of all time? The one where the main character and their love interest start passionately making out, knocking over glasses, bumping into walls, and frantically discarding their clothing as they head for the bedroom? Then, with literally zero foreplay, they’re suddenly having sex and within […]
Chronic Pain and Intimate Relationships: A heartbreaking game of hide and seek
A well-known anonymous quote reads, “Once you accept the reality that even between the closest human beings, infinite distances continue, a wonderful relationship can grow.” As humans, building intimate relationships is one of the most difficult tasks we take on in our lives – yet we are wired to do it anyway. How can we […]
You Are Not a Burden
Whether real or imagined, received from media or from interactions with people in their lives, it is not uncommon for people living with chronic pain to get the message that they are “too much” or “overly needy” and that they should really just “suck it up” and “learn to be independent.” When internalized over many […]
Energy Management: How to Choose from a Place of Power
I was once in the midst of a difficult flare up that forced me into bed for a few days straight. I missed a work deadline, my sister’s graduation, and a friend’s birthday party, but I knew that, no matter how I was feeling, I could not not miss my cousin’s wedding at the end […]
Mourning the Loss: An insight into the chronic pain experience
For many of us, the entire chronic pain experience exists within the context of great loss. The challenges of living in pain can slowly creep in and take over every aspect of our lives, forcing us to give up on everything that feels essential to who we are, from our hobbies and careers to our […]