The 4 Types of People You Meet In Chronic-Land

Chronic-Land is a different kind of place: every member of the community has a diagnosis of some sort, or lives with substantial symptoms of something yet diagnosed.  It's members are on medications, use mobility aids, use heating pads, are on special diets, and have adapted their lift to the best of their ability to have the most function possible.  Chronic-Land covers the world, and nobody actively seeks to be part of it.

Members of Chronic-Land meet a lot of people after you've gaining citizenship.  This is an outline of some of the people I've met after joining, but it's also a guide to others.

Some of these people you'll meet have been part of your life forever, others will be new introductions.  But when it comes to being chronically ill, disability, and/or an invisible diagnosis, I've found that they fall into a couple of set categories:

1.  The Disbelievers
These people don't get it.  Maybe you don't "look" sick enough, or you don't need to use a mobility aid all the time, or have a diagnosis that is made primarily by exclusion.  Whatever it is, there is a part of them that thinks you may be faking it or that it just can't impact you on a serious level.  Like Tom Cruise, these people think that a healthy amount of exercise and vitamins will cure you, and they're frustrated that you don't get that.

On Finding Your Person

In Grey's Anatomy, Meredith and Christina call each other "my person."  My person gives me context, affirmation, and a sense of sisterhood.   I was lucky enough to find her in college.

My person is my best friend.  We don't talk every day, and frankly weeks and weeks can go by where we don't talk.  Some weeks go by and all we've done is send one another memes. 

But my person gets it the way others don't.  She has her own myriad of chronic illnesses.  We know what it means when the other person says "I'm having a day."