Living with an "invisible illness" 58 Articles

by Vicki Brown

I am sick. I am tired. No, I am not tired. I have persistent pervasive fatigue. I am in pain. My head hurts. My back hurts. My arm hurts. My shoulder hurts. My legs hurt. My neck hurts. I am in pain. I am sick. I am on dis...read more

by Mz. Vella

Headaches... chronic tension... unexplained excruciating pain that appears and disappears... speech and memory issues... fatigue... stomach problems from eating aspirin for breakfast, lunch and dinner... confused doctors.....read more

by David Skolnik

If one speaks to me by phone, I sound perfectly normal. If a client were to ask me to come to their office, I would have to insist they come to mine. Once the appointment arrives, my wife greets him/her and the two walk...read more

by Cyn Bagley

I look healthy with my rosy cheeks and sparkling blue eyes: chubby, but healthy. However, if you talked to me, you would find that I have a chronic disease that could kill me if not controlled by chemo therapy and predn...read more

by Adele Durr

I have MS. It is a simple fact that has changed my life forever. It all began when I was 11 and I lost my sight for the first time. I have to say there is nothing more disconcerting then sitting in math class and no...read more

by Judy Zabriskie

I have multiple sclerosis - there I've verbalized it. More often than not, those who don't know me intimately can't tell that I am in constant pain, worried about bowel or bladder malfunction or suffering from intense con...read more

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by Hailee Vale

Diseases That Hide Diagnosed with MCTD and Suspected SLE in 1988-Now Undiagnosed It never left. It must have been there before I had my first flare. I remember as a young woman getting blue fingers at times but it wa...read more

by Linda Batey

Fibromyalgia is completely invisible to others, misunderstood by most, and a plague to too many. For many years, the medical community doubted its existence and entirely too many people, mostly women, were told they were l...read more

by Paula Countryman

I awaken each morning promptly at 5:30 am. I slowly scoot my stiff and pain wracked body to the end of the bed, where I gradually place my feet upon the floor. My labradors wait patiently for me to let them outdoors to do ...read more

by Di Knowles

In 1987 at the age of twenty I gave birth to my first, all be it unexpected, baby. I was a healthy, fit, young Mum, in a matter of months that all changed. In 1991 I was diagnosed with the Queen of invisible illnesses, S...read more

by Melissa J. Clark

I recently was diagnosed with what had been for years my "invisible" illness. Invisible meaning that they hadn't put a name on it yet. I could certainly tell it was there, whether anyone else believed it or not. For the...read more

by Lauren Beyenhof

C. S. Lewis said "The future is something which everyone reaches at the rate of 60 minutes an hour, whatever he does, whoever he is." No one knows how long he will live. Some people even go so far as to say that any of ...read more

by kennethfsk

I was diagnosed with degenerative disk disease (DDD) about 6 years ago, at first it started out as a dull irritating pain in my lower pack. My family doctor told me I need to get more exercises and perhaps lose a little we...read more

by Rene Winsor

Fighting the Reality of Disease Part I of V The First Diagnosis: About 15 years ago, I learned I had Lupus. The doctor stated at the time it was a very hard disease to actually diagnose, and then once you find you have...read more

by Anna Duffy

Dancing Through My Invisible Illness; How Learning Flamenco Helped Me Recover From Lyme Disease In the dream I am dancing to the sound of mysterious and sensual music. My audience is captivated by the graceful flow of m...read more

by April Murray

How could a healhty 32 year old woman become suddenly ill and bed ridden? It happened to me .This is my story ; After the birth of my third child , I seemed to recover pretty quikly considering the cesearan birth. But I ne...read more

by Delia Latham

"But you don't look sick ." It's a phrase I have come to abhor, and yet I know I am doomed to hear it over and over again. Because I suffer from illnesses that are not apparent to the eye, it is difficult for people e...read more

by Wesley Sossamon

Do you really have hypertension? Or, could it be that hypertension is a side effect of a disease that is silently killing 20% of Americans? For years Doctors have been diagnosing patients with Primary Hypertension. Primary...read more

by Vicki Phipps

Optic Neuropathy: The enigma Three years ago, I lost a great deal of my sight. It happened suddenly and literally over night. Not even six medical specialist could explain the enigma of the optic neuropathy....read more

by Celeste Pavlich

Never in a million years did I imagine that being in my 30's would be a complete 360 from the carefree days in my teens and 20's. I thought that I would go on living life to its fullest and embrace each new day with new ey...read more