How I Balance Advocating For Myself as a Patient with Avoiding Hypochondria

(Disclaimer: I am not a doctor and none of this is meant to provide medical advice. This is just my personal experience.) I struggle with being my own patient advocate and not being a hypochondriac. I know that having OCD means that I have a tendency to catastrophize and this includes imagining worst-case possible illnesses …

Some Things You Cannot Do Until You Are Ready

There’s a lot of discussion in the world about “if you wait until you’re ready, you’ll never do it” or “don’t wait until you’re ready, the world is at the end of your comfort zone.” For many people “ready” seems like a dirty word. It’s an excuse or a limit to what you can do, …

Despite Years of Discouragement, This is How I’m Trying to Embrace Exercise Again

Figuring out how to manage your chronic conditions is often a years-long work in process that never really ends.  My newest experiment is a continuation of my on-again, off-again relationship with exercise. Exercise has never come easy for me. I’m not naturally athletic and having back surgery twice only compounded my lack of athletic ability …

Feeling Naïve About My Health for the First Time in a While

I often feel like an expert in being chronically ill. I know how to look up doctors on my insurance company’s website. I know to ask if they cover me just in case when I make an appointment. I know to ask if the tests are covered as well when they suggest something. I know …

How Do I Talk to Myself?

There’s so much advice online about talking to oneself as a friend. You’re supposed to stop the negative self-talk that’s just making you more anxious and depressed. One of the number one pieces of advice on the internet is to treat yourself with kindness. You write out positive affirmations and say them into the mirror. …