Why I don't talk about my pain
If you know someone who has had a chronic illness for a very long time chances are that you have noticed they don’t talk about it anymore. In the beginning they never shut up about it, and now they are silent on the issue. Don’t assume this means they are doing better, they are not miraculously cured. It only means they have given up all hope that by talking about someone will understand what they are going through. It is so hard when you have a chronic illness.  You struggle to keep up with the healthy people in your life, you struggle against the pain and exhaustion, and you struggle to keep your sanity. But the biggest struggle is speaking one language while everyone else hears another. So if you have someone in your life who has a chronic illness, hug them and tell them that you can never understand what they are going through, but that you are there for them no matter how long it takes. You may find for the first time in a long time you are finally speaking the same language.
