Why It's Critical for Celebrities to Continue Raising Awareness of Their Chronic Illnesses
There have been a lot of celebrities lately who have revealed their battles with various chronic illnesses.
Selena Gomez recently announced she received a kidney transplant due to lupus. Lady Gaga announced she has been battling chronic pain and she had to cancel a concert because of it. Shania Twain revealed she lost her voice at one point due to Lyme disease.
These are just three celebrities who have recently broke the silence on chronic illnesses they battle. Suddenly, everyone is spreading awareness about lupus, chronic pain and Lyme disease even though they have been around for years. With that being said, awareness should have started a long time ago.
Why is it that most chronic illnesses are not spoken of until someone famous reveals they too are facing a battle? Is it because people are scared of what others may think? Is it because nobody is willing to listen until their famous idol reveals they are battling the same disease? Is it because the people struggling with these illnesses are not as important as the celebrities?
Well, let me tell you that these people are just as important as the celebrities you watch on TV and read about online. They are fighting a daily battle with a disease most people have never heard of. There needs to be disease awareness every day until proper treatments and hopeful cures are discovered. Many people are battling their chronic illnesses in silence because no one is willing to listen. Even most doctors do not understand the impact a disease may have on a person’s life.
Don’t get me wrong, the recent awareness in the media has been great and has gotten people talking, but it’s not enough. Like most topics of the media, they blow over and in a few weeks, everyone will forget about the diseases celebrities are battling. But the people who won’t forget are those in the same battle against lupus, chronic pain, Lyme disease and every other chronic illness. It’s up to the celebrities to continue raising awareness to their thousands of fans and social media followers. It’s also up to us, those who battle these diseases alongside these celebrities, to continue providing awareness to anyone who will listen. Only awareness will eventually lead to treatments and cures.
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Lead photo courtesy of Lady Gaga, Shania Twain, and Selena Gomez’s Facebook pages
At the age of 14 and as a freshman in high school, Nora was struck with a mysterious illness that would cause chronic pain along with many other symptoms. It wasn’t until she was 16 that she was finally diagnosed with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) and Joint Hypermobilty. She was then diagnosed with Late Stage Neurological Lyme Disease and Lyme Carditis 17 years after the initial tick bite. Nora began writing for The Mighty over a year ago to raise awareness for her diseases and as a way to cope. Today, she has over 25 stories published and many shares and comments on each story.
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