Invisible Illness
Invisible illness is a more recent term used for conditions that aren’t typically visible, such as chronic pain and fatigue.
These conditions are more common than you might think and even if you don’t have one, you probably know someone with one. SLE, Fibromyalgia, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome even anxiety and depression.
These conditions can be quite crippling. One day a person may appear completely “normal”, able to socialise, walk freely, heck even run. The next day they may struggle getting out of bed, walking from one room to the next without getting out of breath. My favourite daily task that often drains my energy when I’m low on energy is washing my hair. A simple task often taken for granted, can be incredibly draining to do.
So what are some things we can do help reduce drain on our bodies, when living with an invisible illness?
Listen to your body. This is paramount! You know your body best, you know those subtle twinges, aches or clues that you have reached your limit. Listen to these and schedule in some rest time. Pushing past this point can result in more time needed to recover, so taking a few hours or a day when these cues start, can help reduce longer downtime later.
Take time for yourself. Self-care is incredibly important to maintain balance for your health. Often we spend so much time on tasks that HAVE to be done, we feel drained and like we haven’t achieved anything we WANTED to do. Spending 5-10 minutes daily doing something that fills up your cup can be incredibly beneficial for your wellbeing.
Gentle exercise. Exercise is an amazing way to move our bodies, stimulate endorphins and de-stress our minds. It also assists in toxin elimination and muscle development and maintenance. On our good days, it can be tempting to go hard however this may push the scale and end in increased rest time. It is better to start with gentle exercises such as a moderate paced walk or guided exercises such as gentle or restorative yoga or low impact reformer pilates. I highly recommend finding an exercise physiologist and working with them to restore balance and strength within your muscles.
Consult your Naturopath. Your Naturopath can assist in identifying the underlying triggers and imbalance that are contributing to your condition. By addressing this, it can assist in the management of your condition in the short and long term.
What can we do to help our friends and family with an invisible illness?
Listen and hear them. It can be difficult to understand that they are having such a rough time when they look “fine”, “normal” or even “healthy”. However, to them, they could be putting on a brave face or actually be in a great deal of pain. Let them know you are there for them and that you understand what they are saying.
Encourage them, support them and respect them. As mentioned earlier, it is important for them to listen to their bodies cues. If they are starting to ask for help or say they need to take a day to rest, please respect this as they are learning to listen to their body and give it what it needs.
Living with an invisible illness does not mean we are broken, we just need to be more mindful and a little extra TLC.
Yours in harmony and health,
Rachael xx
