howtobeapersonwithfibro

[howtobeapersonwithfibro]

Reblog so everyone can hear what they need.

[howtobeapersonwithfibro]

The last time we were on a long flight, my wife and I invented a game we call "Little Guy."

You start a game of Little Guy by saying, "I'm gonna hand you a little guy." The little guy is some kind of baby animal you are imagining. "Oh," she might say in response, "Okay," and hold out her hands for it. I will then mime handing her the animal. This provides some clues as to the little guy's size, weight, and general ungainliness.

She then gets to ask questions about what kind of little guy this is, BUT NO QUESTIONS ABOUT HIS ACTUAL APPEARANCE OR SPECIES ARE ALLOWED. Qualitative questions, or questions about his behavior, are the only ones permitted. She can ask "Is he soft?" or "Does he seem nervous about being held?" or "If I put him in the bathtub, does he seem okay with that?" or "Would he like a lil grape?" or "Is he the sort of little fellow who would wear a vest in a children's book?" but not "Does he have fur," "Is he a reptile," "Is he from Asia," etc. Some questions are in a grey area so you have to follow your heart, but the point is not to identify the animal as fast as possible: the point is to guess the animal purely based on vibes + how he would act if he were in your living room right now.

And I'm not limited to yes or no answers! If she asks, "Would it feel appropriate to see this little guy in a propeller hat?" I can reply, "Oh no, he has a gravity to him. A bowler hat would be a more appropriate hat." Or if she asks, "Does this little guy have protagonist energy?" I can say something like, "he probably wouldn't be the main character in a children's cartoon. He'd probably be the main character's ditzy best friend who's always eating sandwiches, or something."

We're big Twenty Questions to kill time in a waiting room people, but Little Guy is more about the journey than the destination. It's got a different kind of sauce that's nice if "killing time" and "lowering anxiety" need to happen hand in hand.

[howtobeapersonwithfibro]

you’re going to love again, find a job again, create art again, do what you love again, feel powerful again. you’re going to be back on track. i don’t know when, but you are going to feel like yourself again, eventually. this isn’t the end. hang in there.

[howtobeapersonwithfibro]

repeat after me:

on the other side of fear, there is relief. on the other side of fear, there is success. on the other side of fear, there is love. on the other side of fear, there is joy. on the other side of fear, there is contentment. on the other side of fear, there is result. i decide that my fear is not an ocean; it is a line.

#things im trying to learn

[howtobeapersonwithfibro]

yes, there are that many really disabled people on the internet actually

When I was less sick I used to think, "It seems like such a large portion of people on the internet are disabled, it can't possibly be that large of a percentage of the population" and then let my ableism demons tell me it was because they were faking (the same ones that told me I was faking, until I made myself really ill.)

But now that I'm sicker and wiser I realize I was logically just wrong because

The internet is disabled people's lifeline. There are more disabled people on the internet because OF COURSE. People who aren't disabled can be less chronically online because they don't have to be. This is textbook selection bias!

But actually also I was almost right, because there are way more disabled people in society than you would think! They're just systematically hidden and excluded from public spaces for abled peoples' convenience! 🙃

Anyway maybe this will help you understand and/or explain to abled friends and family.

[howtobeapersonwithfibro]

That feeling when your body is requesting something but you're not sure what so you just start eating and drinking random stuff to try and figure it out

[howtobeapersonwithfibro]

In the tags please feel free to add your own!

Please signal boost 💕

[howtobeapersonwithfibro]

Have you ever stopped taking a medication thinking you no longer needed it only to be proven very, very wrong?

#the fight against side effects is real

[howtobeapersonwithfibro]

I am so proud of you for every time you have practiced asserting your boundaries and saying no. You deserve respect and you deserve compassion.

[howtobeapersonwithfibro]

I'm built different. like incorrectly i think

[howtobeapersonwithfibro]

Truth

[howtobeapersonwithfibro]

and is your shame helpful? is it inspiring goodness and change? or is it keeping you frozen in time unable to move on and be everything you have expanded to be?

[howtobeapersonwithfibro]

good read for teachers.

[howtobeapersonwithfibro]

you’ve survived all of your worst days up until now. you can survive this one too.

[howtobeapersonwithfibro]

I hate the “open floor plan” that everyone is obsessed with in houses now. I want nooks and crannies and bizarre floor plans. I don’t need to be able to see what someone is doing on the other side of the house. I want places to hide and lurk and dwell in the shadows. I am the beast who awaits in the labyrinth

[howtobeapersonwithfibro]

Someone being patient with you is one of the softest forms of love

[howtobeapersonwithfibro]

sorry about my constant depressive episodes. its just that i have issues and also problems