Things People Say... to the Invisibly Disabled
People say a lot of things to and about folks with invisible chronic illnesses. I think most of the folks on my flist have heard it all before, aimed at them or people they know and love. Some of it's cruel. Some of it is unthinking. Some of it is well-meant but painful. A lot of these things fall into general categories. Have you tried...? This one is almost always well-meant but it doesn't do much for me. Usually it's folks who have only recently met me who use this one. It doesn't seem to occur to them that, having lived with my various conditions most of my life, chances are I've tried it unless it's something that's just come out of the newest research. Drugs, alternative therapies, magical and spiritual work, physical therapy, acupuncture; I've tried pretty much everything. I've done years of research online and talked to dozens of doctors over the years. Some things have helped. Some have been useless. Some have caused problems for various rea...