An invisible illness, by my crude definition, is one where a person looks fine, talks fine, even acts fine, but is silently suffering on the inside; many diseases fall under this umbrella. For example, lupus, which Selena Gomez was just diagnosed with. Chronic pain, which a lot of people still consider and "in your head" disease. Almost all mental illnesses. And Crohn's Disease, which is very close to what I suffer with myself.
Last month, an English man named Stephen "Ste" Walker posted a Facebook status, where he wrote a refreshingly honest account of his struggles with Crohn's disease that has been liked and shared some tens or thousands of times. In one week, he has done so much to open the lines of conversation about invisible illnesses and the toll they take on their hosts.
Crohn's disease, for those of you that don't know, is characterized by inflammation of the digestive tract that can cause extreme pain, malnutrition, ulcers from the mouth all the way down the digestive tract, eye and skin problems, joint problems, cancer, and even death. There are many treatments available, ranging from scary to down right terrifying, but there is not yet a cure.
As someone who suffers from an extremely close relative of Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, I have had many instances of people not believing, and just plain belittling my struggles. In high school, the climax was when two of my most trusted teachers decided to hold my college reference letters hostage because they thought I was just using my illness as a crutch. That was one of the lowest points of my life.
Mr. Walker cites a similar time where he saw an acquaintance at the hospital, who then thought it OK to ask why he was still there considering he looked fine. This is actually the worst thing you can say to a silent sufferer. He then took to Facebook to express his anger, and well, thankfully, the rest is internet history.
The mouths of silent sufferers have been shut for too long, and it's about time that they be allowed to speak. We're not looking for pity or handouts, just understanding. We know that we don't look sick, or that "some people may have it worse", but what does that have to do with our illnesses? We have the same amount of doctor's visits, hospital stays, needle sticks, "revolutionary" treatments, sick days, strain on relationships, heartache, and cry's out to God, as any other chronically sick person. We just have the "luxury" of looking "ok" as we do it.
So thank you, Ste Walker. Thank you for sharing your story. Thank you for speaking out. Thank you for paving the way for millions of other silent sufferers. Thank you for calling that woman out. Heck, thank you for calling the entirety of the internet out. Thank you for showing me that it's ok to tell people I'm not ok. Thank you for your vulnerability. Thank you for your honesty. And thank you for just being you. Thank you, and fight on!
