Invisible Illness blog post—August 9, 2011

For many years, I have written what I call my “ponderings.”   I write about my personal experiences, poking fun at my own foibles and tying my thoughts into a Biblical lesson about God’s grace.  I love nature and find wonderful metaphors with which to spin these nuggets of truth; truth as I see it.  I am not a theologian or minister.  I just like to ponder and encourage others to ponder along with me.

I have a very active imagination, and yet—it seems silly to say—I do not have the gift for writing fiction.  I have to write from my own experience, boring as it may be.  I liken myself to Bert on Sesame St. who collects paperclips and likes pigeons.  What do I have to say that would be of interest to someone else?  In spite of such reservations, I find that writing nurtures me, and I hope that what I write encourages others to treat themselves with a little bit more grace and gentleness, and to welcome God’s gift of infinite grace.

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As Invisible Illness Week approaches, I hesitate to write about my aches and pains.  I’d much rather write about what a pain in the neck I can be!  Writing is one way that I escape from inhabiting my pain-filled body.  So to write about what I want to escape seems counterintuitive.  I am taking on this challenge because I believe in the ministry of Rest Ministries, the sponsor of Invisible Illness Week; and I support the mission of Invisible Illness Week. I want to do my part to increase public awareness about invisible illness. 

What is it like to have an invisible illness? 

What is it like for my family? 

How can my friends and family be supportive?

What are my fears for my future?

What do I miss the most, due to the constraints of my health?

What does a good day look like for me?

What does a bad day look like for me?

What helps me through the pain?

These are the type of questions I will be “pondering” over the next few weeks. 

I invite you to read some of my earlier posts along with what I will be blogging about my experience with invisible illness.  I’m much more than my diagnoses and hope to give you a reason to chuckle about my foibles while also learning about invisible illness.

Thanks for reading!