Welcome
Hey there.
My name is Kelly. I am a twenty-two year old graduate student that moved to North Carolina this past fall in order to get my Master's in Public Health degree. I've been diagnosed with fibromyalgia and a undifferentiated connective tissue disease. My health is something that I constantly have to deal with. Grad school is made more difficult than it already is because of the pain and exhaustion I experience regularly. I’ve missed more days of work in the past 4 months than I have since I started my first job. I can’t sleep through the night, but even if I did sleep for 10 hours, I’ll still feel the need to take a nap 2 hours after waking up. Sometimes, I physically do not feel like my neck can hold my head up, especially without tremendous pain. Most days I have a migraine that’s so severe, I’m dizzy and nauseous. There’s not a day lately that my body does not ache, but those are the good days compared to the severe pain days. Living in North Carolina but being from Ohio means being told I’m overreacting to the cold and I should be used to cold temperatures. That’s easy to say when cold doesn’t cause you pain. These issues started when I was 14. From then on, I was plagued by never really feeling well and I only finally got an answer as to why a few months ago, after symptoms began to get progressively worse. Some days I feel bed-ridden, which isn't a realistic option for me most days. It’s a daily struggle to meet the high expectations that are set for me, mainly by myself, while fighting an invisible illness.
During my last semester of undergrad, I took a class for my health communication minor about health narratives. It made me realize how important it is to let your voice be heard even in the health care world. Everyone experiences their health differently; this is especially true for those with chronic, and often invisible, illnesses. It inspired me to create this blog in order to tell my own health story. There's a chance no one will this, but this is my story.
My name is Kelly. I am a twenty-two year old graduate student that moved to North Carolina this past fall in order to get my Master's in Public Health degree. I've been diagnosed with fibromyalgia and a undifferentiated connective tissue disease. My health is something that I constantly have to deal with. Grad school is made more difficult than it already is because of the pain and exhaustion I experience regularly. I’ve missed more days of work in the past 4 months than I have since I started my first job. I can’t sleep through the night, but even if I did sleep for 10 hours, I’ll still feel the need to take a nap 2 hours after waking up. Sometimes, I physically do not feel like my neck can hold my head up, especially without tremendous pain. Most days I have a migraine that’s so severe, I’m dizzy and nauseous. There’s not a day lately that my body does not ache, but those are the good days compared to the severe pain days. Living in North Carolina but being from Ohio means being told I’m overreacting to the cold and I should be used to cold temperatures. That’s easy to say when cold doesn’t cause you pain. These issues started when I was 14. From then on, I was plagued by never really feeling well and I only finally got an answer as to why a few months ago, after symptoms began to get progressively worse. Some days I feel bed-ridden, which isn't a realistic option for me most days. It’s a daily struggle to meet the high expectations that are set for me, mainly by myself, while fighting an invisible illness.
During my last semester of undergrad, I took a class for my health communication minor about health narratives. It made me realize how important it is to let your voice be heard even in the health care world. Everyone experiences their health differently; this is especially true for those with chronic, and often invisible, illnesses. It inspired me to create this blog in order to tell my own health story. There's a chance no one will this, but this is my story.
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