Nikki Awareness items, chronic illness, coping, Invisible disability awareness, society, stigma

Invisible Disability: My illness is invisible. I am not.

I have invisible illnesses and I am disabled by some of them. Yes, you can't see them. Yes, they are invisible. But I am not. I matter. My life matters. My existence matters. You can't treat me as Lesser Than just because I am disabled, if you find out I am. You can't judge how … Continue reading Invisible Disability: My illness is invisible. I am not.

Nikki Awareness items, chronic illness, chronic pain, coping with disability, Invisible disability awareness

6 Things to know about Invisible Disability Awareness

This year Invisible Disability Awareness Week falls on October 18th to 24th. According to the Invisible Disabilities Association, the term invisible disability refers to symptoms such as debilitating pain, fatigue, dizziness, cognitive dysfunction, brain injuries, learning differences, mental health disorders, as well as hearing and visual impairments. They are not always obvious to the onlooker, … Continue reading 6 Things to know about Invisible Disability Awareness

Nikki chronic illness, chronic pain, Discrimination, stigma

Chronic illness: Shh no one needs to know you’re chronically ill

So I encountered someone random on social media with an illness that said we should not discuss ableism because people do not get our illnesses and... it doesn't matter. I don't know his life but maybe he has not experienced pervasive stigma like some of us have such that we know the need to spread … Continue reading Chronic illness: Shh no one needs to know you’re chronically ill

Nikki chronic illness, Invisible disability awareness

Do you tell people about your invisible illness?

  Do you tell people about your chronic illness? Why? And why not? For me, it is a matter of having an invisible disability (obviously more visible now with the cane issue). With an invisible disability, there is a lot of revealing and there is a lot of concealing. Because we can decide what level … Continue reading Do you tell people about your invisible illness?