A few months ago, my hair stylist asked me if I was dating anyone. I've been single for the last five years because I've found, like many of you, dating with a chronic illness is no easy task. I was upfront in my dating app profiles about being disabled due to multiple chronic illnesses. It turns out having a complex medical history is not seen as an attractive quality among men searching for a mate. Also, it goes without saying that having a stockpile of pharmaceuticals in my house made me very cautious about bringing anyone new into my life. I certainly didn't advertise to the single dating pool that I suffer from chronic pain. According to the current statistics from the National Center for Drug Abuse, 22 percent of males and 17 percent of females used illegal drugs or misused prescription drugs within the last year. So, the risk of attracting a person with the worst of intentions is real when chronically ill. [More]

I really don’t like spending my money on things I don’t use (do you?), so I cancelled my gym membership. Back when time and money was my own, spending them both at the gym was easy. But after getting married and starting a family, and especially now that I work full time and juggle older kids with expensive activities and crazy schedules, I am busier than ever, and time and money are not my own and are both stretched very thin. It wasn’t an easy decision. I know how important exercise is for good health, and moving my body consistently is a great stress reliever that helps me keep my autoimmune disease in check. [More]

Imagine this: It’s Friday night after a brutally busy week at work, you’re battling a flare-up of your autoimmune disease and you’re completely wiped out. You just pulled on a pair of sweats and are toying with ordering take out and eating it in bed when your phone beeps to remind you that a new friend’s informal little birthday bash starts in an hour. What would you do? [More]

When starting the home training process for subcutaneous immune globulin (SCIG) administration, the nursing service is very clear that patients should plan on administering their weekly SCIG when someone is home with them in case of a reaction. This is a doable plan for those who are married or have others who live with them. But in my case, I live alone. However, I wasn’t going to allow the fact that I live alone stop me from transitioning to SCIG, so I decided to take advantage of an interest-free payment option from my wireless carrier and invest in an Apple watch. [More]

Do you remember navigating those fun houses with mazes of glass hallways and mirrors at the state fairs of our youth? When I think about the 12 years it took to get my rare disease diagnosis, it reminds me of those fun houses — only it was not so fun. [More]

As a teen, I idolized Princess Diana and was devastated when she died. As a mom of three young boys at the time, and having grown up without my own mom, I knew all too well the devastation her young sons were feeling. All I kept thinking was: Those poor boys. With the news of Prince Harry’s autobiography Spare being released in January, I pre-ordered a copy and cleared my reading calendar. Even so, I was completely unprepared for the emotions I experienced when I read it. [More]

I’ve often shared about my “Sunday SubQ” routine of clearing my afternoon schedule, turning on my guilty pleasure reality TV shows and administering my weekly dose of subcutaneous immune globulin (SCIG). However, I recently grappled with what to do when two Sundays in a row happened to be holidays and my infusions were due. Luckily, when it comes to SCIG, it’s easy to flex the infusing schedule by two days, either way! [More]

Five years ago, when I started blogging on the professional level, I was highly encouraged to include social media pages that corresponded with my blog. And, even though my local paper no longer supports blog content, I continue to promote my writing through social media. About a year ago, I branched my content into the world of TikTok, where I came upon an adorable geriatric pug, Noodle, and his wonderful adoptive owner, Jonathan Graziano. [More]