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
Tag: depression
How the opioid crisis can lead those with chronic pain to suicide
1 out of 10 suicides is due to chronic pain, and yet the link between chronic pain and suicide is often ignored. Furthermore, no one connects the opioid crisis to chronic pain suicide even though they’re all related to each other. Society demands that pain be concealed I’ve long struggled with finding the words to…Continue reading How the opioid crisis can lead those with chronic pain to suicide
Why showering with Fibromyalgia is the worst thing ever
A few months ago I shared on twitter and Instagram that I finally purchased a shower chair, because showering with Fibromyalgia is rough. This was something I put off for years because I didn’t consider myself disabled enough and I am stubborn. Now that I have the chair I feel foolish for waiting so long,…Continue reading Why showering with Fibromyalgia is the worst thing ever
When you have a chronic illness you are enough
Guest post by Megan Clark Neville: Megan Clark Neville worked as a children’s librarian at a public library for three years. She published a chapter on Summer Reading Club Programs for Elementary Children through the Texas State Library in 2011. She has been chronically ill for the past sixteen years. She currently lives in the…Continue reading When you have a chronic illness you are enough
The truth about chronic pain, depression, and suicide
A conversation on my Facebook page about the side effects of living with long term chronic pain reminded me that I needed to address this topic. I’ve avoided it because I don’t like getting too personal or emotional on my blog, and talking about depression and suicide gets really emotional. However, the more discussion I…Continue reading The truth about chronic pain, depression, and suicide
The emotional and psychological impacts of living in constant pain
The emotional and psychological impact of constant pain makes me feel dead inside. No really. I’m sitting here trying to get in touch with my feelings so that I can write a blog post, and I can’t do it because I’ve cut off all my feelings. I’m not supposed to feel sad or frustrated, and…Continue reading The emotional and psychological impacts of living in constant pain
The isolating and painful loneliness of life with chronic illness
Everyone that lives with chronic illness eventually has a moment where they experience isolating and painful loneliness. It hits you when you realize that because of your illness you’ve been forgotten. Somehow despite your best efforts you’ve become invisible. The pain of it hits you like a ton of bricks as you realize that…Continue reading The isolating and painful loneliness of life with chronic illness
The side effects of chronic pain no one talks about
There are severe side effects to long-term chronic pain. However, because of the recent hysteria about the “opioid epidemic” there have been some discussions by doctors and the CDC about how patients in chronic pain just should accept their pain. They suggest people with chronic pain use “nonpharmacologic therapy” such as massage, physical therapy, etc.…Continue reading The side effects of chronic pain no one talks about
Positive thinking is a coping mechanism, not a cure
No one would ever accuse me of being an optimistic person. If you ask me if the glass is half empty or half full, I’d say that it has water in it. My family likes to tell me I’m like Eeyore because I was depressed in high school (because four years of depression in your teen…Continue reading Positive thinking is a coping mechanism, not a cure