I came into this isolation idea feeling quite comfortable with the whole idea of it.
Don’t get me wrong, I knew it’d suck in the way that this stuff always does – with all that grief and annoying emotions. But I’ve done it before in much worse situations, so this would be child’s play.
Or so I thought.
Continue reading “Self-isolation is a fun way to realise I have PTSD about isolation”Being self-isolated has brought around a lot of different feelings for all of us. In some ways it’s making us creative – like figuring out how to play beer pong on video chat with friends in other houses.
I’m seeing (and posting) food and workout photos on social media, but also we all know that we don’t tend to put the arguments and weeping videos on there too.
So… I can’t help but guess that life in everyone else’s bubbles is probably not always as amusing as your TikTok dances.
Continue reading “Iso-grief is a real thing as we hide from the coronavirus”I don’t want to brag, but I had to isolate myself before it was cool
I’m a high-risk, immunocompromised woman with a lung condition so COVID-19 has thrown me into self-isolation and now it seems like most people are doing this as the severity of the COVID-19 pandemic increases.
But this isn’t my first time at the rodeo and I’m here for you guys!
At the end of 2018 I had an undiagnosed Inflammatory Bowel Disease and a rare parasite that had me lose 20% of my body weight before it was diagnosed and treated 8 months later.
It caused me to have a nervous breakdown and go into hiding for around 9 weeks. While it wasn’t full isolation, it wasn’t far off. And it felt more isolating that I can even describe. And that’s just one of the times I was too sick to leave the house for a decent period of time.
I’ve written other blogs about that saga, but this one is my attempt to consolidate how my Type A self-healer personality got me through this excruciating pain, fear and loneliness in a way that was surprisingly positive and constructive.
Edit | This was written 12 March 2020 using the most up-to-date, government advice and links that I could find in New Zealand but please do your own research. Advice is changing on a daily basis.
Watching the COVID-19 epidemic, now pandemic, create so much panic has been a really interesting thing for me to watch.
As a person who would sit in a higher risk patient category in a currently low risk country (New Zealand) where some people have been stockpiling toilet paper and hand sanitiser, I have to say…. what in the world is happening?!
I have a Primary Immune Deficiency (PID) and Bronchiectasis which is a respiratory disease – a wonderful combination that doesn’t pair well with Coronavirus.
So why am I not afraid? Why am I not panicking as much as other people? Why am I not bunkering down?
Continue reading “COVID-19: An immunocompromised person’s perspective”There is so much to unpack when it comes to talking about chronic illness and sexuality – mostly because we don’t talk about it.
As a person with invisible illnesses, I would say that I don’t have it as hard as people with visible physical or intellectual disabilities as there is a tendency to totally infantilise or even fetishise them. So this isn’t about that – I can fake being well to the point that I’m not treated “differently” purely because of how I’m perceived.
In saying that, being sicker than most my whole life, and now with several chronic illnesses, I think I can confidently say that the medicalisation of my body has taken some of my sexuality. But I want it back!
Continue reading “Can you be sick and sexy?”I’ve noticed a lot lately that my perception on the things I’ve been through is really different that other peoples’ perception of it.
When I talk about my health and life lows without cushioning what I say, it seems to make people uncomfortable because it sounds terrible. But the honest truth is that it’s not. You don’t need to say you’re sorry for what I’ve been through. I’m happy about all of it.
Continue reading “Trauma has made me who I am, and I like it”Content warning: Weight loss, eating disorders, fatphobia, discussion of physical and mental illness
We’re all screwed up. Honestly, we are so brainwashed it’s out of control.
In the last year I’ve lost 20% of my body weight then gained it all back. I went down two dress sizes then went back up them. I lost most of the fat on my body, then I got it all back. I lost the natural shape of my body, then I filled back out.
Continue reading “What I learnt from my involuntary weight loss”I’ve been diagnosed with Common Variable Immunodeficiency (CVID) for over three years now and I’ve noticed something that no doctors or nurses have ever warned me about.
Something that happens to me so consistently, I’m not really sure why there isn’t, at the very least, a brochure handed to me to help me out when I go through it.
And that is, how bloody hard it is to cope with medication, treatment, or health management changes. Continue reading “Coping with medication and treatment changes – the 5 stages of grief”
Content warning: Mentions of physical and mental illness and unintentional weight loss
As of next Monday I’m taking my work hours down to 20 hours a week for the foreseeable future.
I’m a 31yo, upbeat, fairly healthy looking woman who works out several times a week, is smart and driven and loves my job.
So why am I cutting down my work hours?
Continue reading “Why the 40 hour work week doesn’t work for me any more”Content warning: Suicide, suicidal ideation and descriptions of suicidal ideation
I’ve talked about a lot of things with my friends and family (and anyone on the internet who wants to know how my bowel condition is going). I’ll talk about my haemorrhoids to anyone who asks. I’m a bit of an open book if people are asking questions (for better or worse) and I’m quite proud of that openness.
But one thing I’ve never gotten very deep into is the depression that is linked with chronic illness and how that can dive into the realm of suicidal thoughts, ideation, plans or worse.
Continue reading “Getting honest about suicidality in chronic illness”
