Tag Archives: suffering

Enough

I’ve been waiting until I felt well enough to post about my breast cancer surgery and recovery, about the treatment I will begin in January. I have words to say about experiencing the healthcare system as a person with cancer … Continue reading

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“I have cancer”

I told my husband last week, “It’s just as hard to tell people you have cancer as it is to find out you have cancer in the first place.” So, let me take a deep breath and say: I have … Continue reading

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29

I got sick on October 6, 1994. Writing a memoir that spans almost three decades requires a lot of self-reflection, not only about what I’ve been through but about the choices I made, what I got wrong, and what I … Continue reading

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A Million More, and Counting

Today is #MillionsMissing, a worldwide day of protest and awareness for the millions of people missing from their lives due to ME. We raise our voices on behalf of our own community, and also on behalf of our compatriots with … Continue reading

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Do We Ever Stop Counting?

I have been sick for twenty-seven years, today. My sickaversary gives rise to different feelings every year. Burdened. Triumphant. Heartsick. Contented. Marking the day, here with you or on my own, feels important. October 6th is the day my life … Continue reading

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#MillionsMissing Book Review: A Still Life

Today is #MillionsMissing, a day to raise awareness and make people with ME visible to the world. As part of the event, people with ME are sharing their stories on social media but instead of sharing mine I’m going to … Continue reading

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Darkness and Light

Today is the winter solstice, the longest night of the year. It’s a time of darkness in a hard winter, but also a time of light as the sun begins to return. Perhaps it is fitting that I face the … Continue reading

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Compassion

I have spent a lot of time reflecting on compassion this year. It’s been impossible not to, as I read the news each day. 2020 has been–well, it’s been 2020. I have felt such anger and frustration at the lack … Continue reading

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Always Another Chance

Toni Bernhard has published a new book, How To Be Sick: Your Pocket Companion. Whether you have read Toni’s other books or not, I think you will find this one to be the perfect fit. This book is not a … Continue reading

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How To Stay At Home

One thing I have learned during the COVID-19 pandemic is that people with chronic illness have a lot to teach healthy people. We have the skills and hard-earned experience of coping with social isolation and restrictions on what we want … Continue reading

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