Tag Archives: PEM

Waylaid

Posted on October 10, 2024 by Jennie Spotila

Almost five years after the first cases of COVID-19 in China, I finally got it. Honestly, I expected this test to be positive for flu. My husband and I had been testing COVID negative on rapid antigen tests for days. … Continue reading →

Posted in Occupying | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Hello, Stranger

Posted on September 27, 2024 by Jennie Spotila

When I was diagnosed with breast cancer last October, I had grand plans: I would blog through my surgery and whatever treatment followed. I was hungry for examples of other people with ME who had been through cancer treatment, especially … Continue reading →

Posted in Occupying | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 31 Comments

“I have cancer”

Posted on November 20, 2023 by Jennie Spotila

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 →

Posted in Occupying | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 56 Comments

Not NICE

Posted on August 23, 2021 by Jennie Spotila

Last week, the ME community was expecting the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in the UK to publish new guidelines for the treatment of people with ME/CFS. Based on the draft guidelines published in November 2020, it … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, Commentary | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

#MillionsMissing Book Review: A Still Life

Posted on May 12, 2021 by Jennie Spotila

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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How To Stay At Home

Posted on July 7, 2020 by Jennie Spotila

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 →

Posted in Commentary | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

How You Doin’?

Posted on June 1, 2020 by Jennie Spotila

How are you in these quaran-times, my friends? My husband and I are doing everything possible to avoid infection because we know how scary COVID-19 can be. I have not left my house for anything except short walks in more … Continue reading →

Posted in Occupying | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Sacrifice

Posted on April 23, 2020 by Jennie Spotila

I’ve lost count of the number of masks I’ve sewn. More than sixty, at least. I was sewing even before the CDC recommended that everyone wear masks, because I knew that my husband and I needed them. When the official … Continue reading →

Posted in Occupying | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments