This week, 9/13-9/19, is National Invisible Chronic Illness Awareness Week, sponsored by Rest Ministries! Below is the first half of my responses to their list of “30 Things About My Invisible Illness You May Not Know.”

1. The illness I live with is: fibromyalgia  (and others)
2. I was diagnosed with it in the year: 2001
3. But I had symptoms since: 2000
4. The biggest adjustment I’ve had to make is: having to monitor how my entire body is feeling every single minute of the day. Then I take that information and decide if I need to change anything about what I’m doing at the moment to prevent worse pain from coming.
5. Most people assume: I am in less pain than I am.
6. The hardest part about mornings is: getting out of bed, stiff body and all, feeling like I’ve only slept 30 minutes. morning after morning after morning.
7. My favorite medical TV show is: Mystery Diagnosis – I relate to how hard it is to get a correct diagnosis
8. A gadget I couldn’t live without is: if we’re talking mechanical gadget, it’d be my smart phone. When I’m not at home I need to have access to important information, my schedule and be able to look things up the internet.
9. The hardest part about nights are: having enough energy to cook a somewhat healthy meal, clean up and still be pleasant and present for The Helpful Hubby.
10. Each day I take at least 3 pills & vitamins. (No comments, please)
11. Regarding alternative treatments I: I am very interested in research being done on alternative treatments. Massage if veryhelpful (also expensive!) for me, but I did not feel any changes with acupuncture. Chiropractic care has also been very beneficial for me.
12. If I had to choose between an invisible illness or visible I would choose: an invisible illness. Although it comes with less apparent challenges and disbelief from others, I still feel that it is easier to achieve more with invisibility of illness.  People are not as quick to judge your appearance and discount your abilities.
13. Regarding working and career: I wish I had realized the extent of the effects of my fibromyalgia on working before I was almost finished with my college degree. If I had I wouldn’t have gotten a degree in a field that requires irregular and long hours, solving unforeseen problems while standing hours on end.
14. People would be surprised to know: the subject that brings me the most anxiety is my ability/inability to access good medical care, any time or place it is needed
15. The hardest thing to accept about my new reality has been: realizing I need to ask for help to do things I could physically accomplish at the moment, but if I did, I would be in pain during it or for weeks afterward

Tomorrow’s post will reveal the second half of the questions and my answers

My all-in-one smartphone, couldn't live without it!