Why “In Limbo”?

 Why is my blog named “Chronically In Limbo”?

The chronic part is easy to explain. Mostly this blog will be about life with chronic illness. I suffer from several chronic illnesses including Fibromyalgia, ME/CFS, Osteoarthritis, Depression/Anxiety, and my most recent diagnosis of Functional Neurological Disorder (FND).

Life with chronic illnesses can be tough with a lot of highs and lows, and having dealt with them for many years, I would love to offer help, support and encouragement to others in a similar situation so that they know they’re not alone. And also offer a window into the world of chronic illness for those who, while maybe not living with it themselves, would like to better understand it in order to be of help and support to friends and family in a similar situation.

So why “In Limbo”?

There are many reasons why people living with chronic illness may feel like their life is now in limbo, but I would like to tell you about my experience of it.

One of the worst parts of living with chronic illness for me isn’t that you can’t do certain things. It’s that one day you might be able to do it, and the next day without warning suddenly you can’t. It’s the uncertainty of never know until you wake up in the morning just what your body is going to allow you to do that day. It’s a long stretch of feeling better, getting things done, making plans, only to have it all derailed by an unexpected flare up of symptoms. It’s not knowing from one day to the next, even from one hour to the next, what your life is going to look like.

How do you make plans without knowing whether you might wake up one morning unable to move due to pain? How do you schedule your time without knowing when the sudden bone-deep, heavy weight of fatigue might strike? How do you maintain friendships when there might suddenly be days or weeks where even composing a simple text message seems beyond your feeble capabilities? How can you live a full, well-rounded life when uncertainty rules your days and nights?

This is my experience of a life in limbo due to chronic illness.




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