Lewis Carroll brought us the phrase “down the rabbit hole,” introducing the term in 1865 in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. In the story, the phrase was literal – she actually, physically fell down a rabbit hole, landing in Wonderland. In this context, falling down the rabbit hole was about stumbling upon a surreal, strange and absurd place. Many believe that this was meant to be … Continue reading Down, Down, Down The Rabbit Hole
This (thankfully, nearly ending) winter has been one of the hardest I’ve ever had. I talked about it some here, but, new developments. Aside from the actual pain, fatigue, foggy brain et. al. that comes with my particular brand of chronic illness (and exacerbating issues), the most difficult and frustrating thing for me has been a steadily decrease of my own functionality. Growing up in … Continue reading Functionality and Chronic Illness
I am fairly certain that every single person I know who has to take medication to live a halfway normal life has these complaints, and I feel that it’s worth drawing some attention to. There are a couple different angles I’m coming at this from, so bear with me. ONE: With the whole “I’m smarter than a doctor” internet community, comes things like this: So, … Continue reading Let’s Talk About Meds
For a lot of years I’ve been aggravated at the difference in health-care for men and women. The old sexism that lingers, the ways that women are downplayed, the dismissive attitudes and ultimately, lack of proper diagnostics and treatment we receive. No matter what, any time I bring this topic up with women, I hear the same stories over and over and over, varying degrees … Continue reading Medical Gaslighting
Really, really old me. My body feels twice my age right now, and it has for quite a while. Welcome to my laundry list of complaints. I’m tired, so tired. Exhausted, really. All day, every day. My head hurts, my neck hurts, my shoulder hurts, my stomach hurts. I have reflux, and my iron levels are low, and when I got increasingly cold and tired … Continue reading Dear Diary – New Year, Old Me
I’ve got a number of thoughts here that I’ve talked about at various times, and they all sort of tie together so here it is. I came across this image a couple times today on Facebook, so I imagine it’s going a bit viral. “This is what depression looks like.” But, no. This is what depression CAN look like. To me, wording matters. Others will … Continue reading What -Insert Illness- Looks Like
Today, I’m 4 years old. It’s summer, the sky is blue, the clouds are fluffy, the sun is shining. We live in a small town in southern Ontario, about an hour-and-a-half’s drive slightly south-west of Toronto. It’s the mid-80’s, and we all know our neighbours, and so, as happened from time to time, my mother asked me to walk to the grocery store to buy … Continue reading The Trouble with Sleep
