Favourite Spoonie Blogs

My Top Spoonie Blogs

Hi Guys,
Todays post is going to be all about my favourite 'Spoonie' blogs. So lets crack on!

• Bendy Beth - I love Beth so much. We first started talking on twitter over a year ago now (how time flies when you are having fun!) and she is always there for me. Thank you Beth!
• Laughing from my sickbed - Irene is one of the strongest women i know. I hope she doesn't mind me saying this but she has been ill for over 30 years and continues to carry on fighting. She is very strong-minded and her blog is amazing if you want advice, information and laughs.
• Fight ME Strong - Charlotte is amazing and so positive and inspirational. A lovely gorgeous girl who i am proud to be friends with.
• Sick Girl Diary - I first found Kelly on Youtube, and can i just say, I luuurve her Youtube channel. She has the best spoonie videos and is so positive and inspirational.
• Mookpixie -  I found Charlotte on twitter and then saw her blog after that. She is such a lovely girl and her posts are so helpful.

Okay, so they are some of my favourite spoonie blogs, sorry i couldn't include them all but please let me know what some of your favourite spoonie blogs are as i would love to find some more!

Worthlessness - Emotions we experience when chronically ill

Hey guys,

It's me again! Okay, let's be honest, who else would it be?! Oops, the posts are becoming further and further apart!

WORTHLESSNESS - (I hope that is a word!)
We live in a society where the first thing people ask you (when you first meet them) is "what do you do?", meaning 'for a living' its quite easy to feel like you do nothing when you're ill. (If you are a teen like me, you get asked what school you go to, and I have no idea what to answer when they ask that!) Awkward!!

Many spoonies with these illnesses don't have the strength or energy to even do ordinary household chores let alone hold a 9-5, Mon-Fri job outside the home too.

Even those who don't have the fatigue problem still are very limited because of having to avoid chemicals and dust and mold, bright lights (sitting in front of a computer or in a shop), loud noises and other things.

So the 'what do you do' question is quite tricky! Others seem to judge us by that standard too. So what is our worth? If you are a doctor or a teacher, you are 'worth' more than someone who is a cleaner or works in a shop.

All of us who are ill go through this questioning at least periodically, and especially during long periods of 'crashes'. We don't even know who we are anymore! :(

We're sure not like we were pre-illness! Some can't play with their kids like they used to, do the hobbies or sports that they once loved. And we feel like we're always needing something, some help. We feel very dependent on others and sometimes we feel that others resent that.

We don't want to ask for too much because after all what do we have to offer in return?

What have we done to deserve gifts and treats?

The frustrating thing is, us who are ill, are often very bright, clever people. Our dreams were to become vets, or firemen!

We had/have potential and it's really hard to explain that to someone.

How do you feel about this? Whether you experience any of these emotions or symptoms regularly, I just wanna say that you are not alone. Sometimes it's hard to tell how you feel, especially if you are feeling more than one emotion at a time.

I hope this series is helping some of you

Chloe xo

Worthlessness - Emotions we experience when chronically ill

Hey guys,

It's me again! Okay, let's be honest, who else would it be?!

WORTHLESSNESS - (I hope that is a word!)
We live in a society where the first thing people ask you (when you first meet them) is "what do you do?", meaning 'for a living' its quite easy to feel like you do nothing when you're ill. (If you are a teen like me, you get asked what school you go to, and I have no idea what to answer when they ask that!) Awkward!!

Many spoonies with these illnesses don't have the strength or energy to even do ordinary household chores let alone hold a 9-5, Mon-Fri job outside the home too.

Even those who don't have the fatigue problem still are very limited because of having to avoid chemicals and dust and mold, bright lights (sitting in front of a computer or in a shop), loud noises and other things.

So the 'what do you do' question is quite tricky! Others seem to judge us by that standard too. So what is our worth? If you are a doctor or a teacher, you are 'worth' more than someone who is a cleaner or works in a shop.

All of us who are ill go through this questioning at least periodically, and especially during long periods of 'crashes'. We don't even know who we are anymore! :(

We're sure not like we were pre-illness! Some can't play with their kids like they used to, do the hobbies or sports that they once loved. And we feel like we're always needing something, some help. We feel very dependent on others and sometimes we feel that others resent that.

We don't want to ask for too much because after all what do we have to offer in return?

The frustrating thing is, us who are ill, are often very bright, clever people. Our dreams were to become vets, or firemen!

We had/have potential and it's really hard to explain that to someone.

How do you feel about this? Whether you experience any of these emotions or symptoms regularly, I just wanna say that you are not alone. Sometimes it's hard to tell how you feel, especially if you are feeling more than one emotion at a time.

I hope this series is helping some of you

Chloe xo

Emotions we experience due to Chronic illness - REJECTION

Yes, it's that time again. I'm really enjoying writing these posts, so let's crack on with another one!


REJECTION -
I'm afraid that way too often people who are disabled, unable to work or participate, having weird sounding invisible symptoms end up feeling rejected.

Sometimes that is because they are being rejected. We live in a society who values most productivity.

Most self worth comes from what you 'do' and we can't do much. Sometimes we are shunned, sometimes actually told off for not being able to work, go to school or care for others. Some think that we are simply not trying.

When other people behave like this I try to remember that they are afraid. Our illness scares them. It exposes their own vulnerability and people feel very comfortable when they feel vulnerable. We are a reminder to them that nothing in life is sure, nothing forever. Nothing can be planned too far ahead, life gets in the way. Things happen. I certainly didn't imagine myself like this at 15. I thought id be in school, with friends, going shopping every weekend, maybe having a boyfriend? But no.

It is often easier for otter people to deny that we are really ill than to face that possibility themselves. Sometimes the rejection comes from indirect comments and dometimes, we spoonies can be more sensitive than others. We can also be stronger than others but we do have more time to sit and think about things that people have said about us. Resting, not being able to sleep, things go round and round in our heads.

I feel rejected as a teenager. I don't feel that I'm a very good teenager. I don't want to go out to parties because I know how crap I'll feel afterwards. I won't know anyone, I don't have a boyfriend and I don't have many friends. I try to be independent but I'm not. I don't go to school and I don't know the latest celeb gossip. I don't listen to the latest music and I don't wear fashionable clothes. I don't smoke, drink or go clubbing. So there you go. Not like other teenagers at all.

Rejected!!

Xo

Chronically ill - Emotions - GRIEF

Yes, grief. It's a bit of a different one today but hopefully it will make sense. So let's get started!

GRIEF -
After the initial shock of being ill comes a time of grieving.

There are loads of loss's that you will encounter. Loss of health, jobs, abilities, money, lifestyle and often friendships and other relationships. It sometimes feels like you are a completely different person and that you have lost a part of yourself.

It's hard to be yourself and express yourself when you feel so ill and have so little energy.

There's a loss of income, loss of enjoyments, hobbies and loss of freedom. Chronic illnesses especially those like these that affect every part of your being cause you to feel like you've lost your old self. With the recognition of those losses comes a time of mourning. Some people experience this briefly, others go through this period for a very long time. Like other illnesses a time of feeling angry follows too. Wanting to fight back. These losses are very real and some are forever.

It's weird to call it "grief" but really, that's what it is!

You have lost so much and it's hard, especially if you got ill very suddenly, and BAM! everything has gone.

Anyway, I guess that's enough for now. I'm so impressed with myself that I have managed to keep up this series, usually I give up or forget after a few posts of a 'series'! Am still going strong, and I'll hopefully see you next time! *waves goodbye!*

Xo