Strategies for Surviving Celebrations (and Daily Life) with Chronic Illness
Updated November 20, 2021 We all have energy-sucking events and tasks in our lives. They can range from doing routine household chores to planning a big celebration, such as a family party or a wedding. When you have a chronic illness, approaching any of them can feel overwhelming. Where do you start? Will you have…
4 Techniques to Quit Smoking for Good
One common New Year’s resolution is to quit smoking. If you’ve made a promise to yourself and your family to kick the habit, my new post for Mango Health could be just what you need to quit and quit for good: “I smoked my first cigarette at 17. It made me feel nauseated, so I’m…
Chronic Christmas and the e-book Cover Design Awards
There are many reasons I love Chronic Christmas. Working on it help me find my writing mojo again, I had a lot of fun with it, both to creating it and talking to others about it in the months leading up to the holidays. I also very much love to cover. When Aimee Coveney of…
Let’s Talk: Arthritis and Mental Health and Well-Being
People who live with arthritis experience anxiety and depression at a higher rate than the general population.[1] I am one of those people, both in terms of the arthritis and the mental health issues. Over my 50-year “career” with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) I have spent a lot of time feeling depressed. Like the 30% of…
6 Tips on How to Have a Chronic Illness on Social Media
Are you on social media? Of course you’re on social media; everyone is these days. But if you have a chronic illness, be careful not to post photos of you spending time with people you like, or even smiling. If you do, it could get your disability claim rejected. Kayla Barry knows this firsthand. A…
Quiet Thoughts
When last heard from, I was “enjoying” a bout of croup. It’s much better now, and but there are some residual effects. Namely that I can’t talk too much without getting very croaky and my voice hurting. Yes, I did say that my voice hurts. I’m finding all sorts of new terminology as a result…
Building Self-Esteem When Your Body Betrays You
Chronic illness can impact your self-worth. In my new post for Mango Health, I write about how this happens and what you can do to build self-esteem: “Your body is supposed to work with you. More than that, it should do what you want, smoothly and efficiently following the electrical impulses from your brain. It…
Empower Yourself with Chronic Illness in 2017
This year on RAHealthCentral, we are going to talk about empowerment and chronic illness: what it is, why it’s important, and how to get there: “Do you feel powerless in the face of your chronic illness and everything that comes with it? This year, we will help you transform into being empowered in your health…
In which I Get Croup and Learn a Lesson
My vocal cords swelled so much I had to have a an emergency tracheostomy. And it has been haunting me since. By last Thursday, things had deteriorated from severe voice strain. I was reduced to only being able to whisper, the breathing was worse and so was the cough. Back to my doctor I went…
2016: One Hell of a Year
Well, that;s been quite something, hasn’t it? 2016 was a year that had opinions about what should happen, made it so, and many of us didn’t like it. For one, it was, in the words of the Toronto Star, “the year the music died.” David Bowie left us in early January and I’m still not…
The Year in Review on RAHealthCentral
Year-in-review articles all around in this. Personally, I’m sort of addicted to the things, so it was a pleasure to write a version of this phenomenon for RAHealthCentral: “We have come to the end of another year, and I can’t be the only person who feels it went by in six months instead of 12….
3 Self-Care Resolutions for Chronic Illness
Updated November 21, 2021 Sometimes, a break from the busy can serve as an inspiration for making some changes to your life. Taking time off over the holidays has always been a wonderful way to help me get a bit of perspective on just how bonkers life has become. Here are three somewhat quirky resolutions…