“#ChronicPain is a constant, day-to-day companion. It never goes unfelt or unnoticed, except to passersby who often see laughter, smiles…not debilitating, agonizing #pain. The reality of living with chronic pain is vastly different.” #chronicillness

What People Need to Understand About Chronic Pain This Pain Awareness Month

Kelly Douglas shares what people should know about chronic pain during Pain Awareness Month.

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“One illness frequently affects another… #Anxiety or #stress are triggers for #fibromyalgia. If I’m in a #flareup, it can cause my #depression to come to the forefront. Being in #chronicpain can certainly make a person #depressed. It’s a vicious cycle.”

6 Things People Should Know About Living With Both Physical and Mental Illness

What it's like living with fibromyalgia, major depressive disorder and panic disorder.

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“During flareups #symptoms become unbearable… the only thing I can do is lay in a dark room… The very best of days can turn into the worst at the drop of a hat. This is a big reason why people w/ #Fibromyalgia are reluctant to make plans.” @creativefibro

“You keep waiting to get better, to get back to your “old self” — but you never do… Maybe you’re at a 7/10 on the pain scale when yesterday you were at 9. But you’ve been running on fumes for far too long, and you are not OK.” #chronicillness #chronicpain

Imagine What It's Like to Live My Life as a Chronically Ill Person

Mighty contributor Casey Burke shares what it's like to live as a chronically ill person.

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“Like a battery that’s been damaged and never seems to recharge properly—these are people who for decades don’t feel rested… The next time someone with an invisible #disability says they’re tired, please don’t treat them as if they’re lazy.” #ChronicPain

“Prescription practices did not create the #opioidcrisis and are not sustaining it… Yet millions of #cpp have been force-tapered to ineffective doses and thousands are dying of medical collapse or suicide, while the DEA persecutes MDs for trying to help.”

Government data refute the notion that overprescribing caused the ‘opioid crisis’

The root of the opioid crisis is not pain treatment. It is instead a crisis of hopelessness driven by the conditions in which people live.

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“When you see me out with my friends, what you don’t see is that it will take me three days to recover… When you see me looking energetic and getting things done, what you don’t see is that this is the first good day I’ve had in weeks.” #InvisibleIllness

What You Don't See Because of My Invisible Illness

A woman with an invisible illness explains what hides behind her smile.

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“The way you keep fighting each day, through every struggle, shows such great strength. I see you getting back up, each time life knocks you down… To everyone one of you reading this, thinking “I am not enough”… You are, and will always be.” #ChronicPain

To The Woman Who Doesn't Feel Enough on International Women's Day

To the women who don't feel extraordinary on International Women's Day. I am here to remind you that you are enough!

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“Some bad pain days turn into weeks or months which leave me #bedridden… My mind goes from #anxiety, to grief, to anger, to #depression, then finally…numbness. It’s when I go numb that is the worst. I feel nothing besides the #pain my body creates.” #cpp

“When people ask if I’m OK I always say yeah I’m fine when I’m far from fine. If I told the truth I don’t think people would understand and I hate feeling like I’m depressing people.” When Pain Is Your Normal #chronicpain #chronicillness #spoonie

15 Things People Don't Realize You're Doing Because Pain Is Your Normal

The Mighty community shares things they do because pain is a normal part of their lives.

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“Imagine plugging in a dead cell phone over night. When you awake, you expect it to be at 100%. But when you wake, it’s only at 9% and you have to try and function on that 9%. You’re never fully charged.” #chronicillness #fatigue #pwME #pwLC

“Because chronic #intractablepain is constant, difficult to manage, incurable and usually severe, our bodies are constantly fighting it… This affects every part and piece of us…we have to fight back against every day… The #fatigue is debilitating.” #cpp

What It Means to Be 'Tired' With Chronic Pain

As someone with chronic pain, the writer describes what the extreme and debilitating fatigue she experiences looks like and feels like.

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“It takes a lot of energy to be in pain all the time, and doing normal things takes more out of us than it does for a healthy person… #Fatigue is a symptom of essentially every #chronicillness I’ve ever heard of.” What Is #ChronicPain @kmitchellauthor

“If you struggled to shower today; if you can’t get out of bed because the pain is so bad…if you’re crying at 2am because you can’t handle the severity of your #pain… Know #YouAreNotAlone—We are all warriors, fighting battles nobody sees or understands.”

What I Need You to Hear If You Don't Understand Being Young With Chronic Pain

A young woman living with rheumatoid arthritis describes what you need to know if you don't understand what it's ...

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“Being #chronicallyill is exhausting. Not the kind of exhausted a good nap can fix. It’s never ending #fatigue that fluctuates on a spectrum of bearability… I still care even when I’m absent. I think of you often and wish I had the energy left to phone.”

What I Need You to Know When I Don't Reply | Chronic Illness Truths

None of us can pour from an empty cup, and yet so often we keep trying to pour long after we are empty. ...

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“We are so used to pushing through and fighting, but sometimes rest is exactly what we need. We don’t have superpowers and our bodies need rest to be able to keep going. Listen to your body.” 15 Tips for Coping With #ChronicPain #Disabilities #Spoonie

15 Tips for Coping With Chronic Pain

A young woman shares 15 tips that help her cope with chronic pain.

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