My Illness May Be Invisible, but a Picture of Me Can Tell a Thousand Words
Isn’t it bizarre how a picture can hide so much? How a simple picture can mislead people to believe someone is over-dramatizing their situation? If they are smiling, they must be OK, right?
So many people of all walks of life are slipping past others’ radars because people don’t take an extra second to see if people really are OK.
A picture can be worth a thousand words. Words unspoken, words unseen, words looked past like they are nothing. Why?
The girl in this picture, for instance. Let’s talk about her and let’s reveal all of her secrets that lie beneath the surface of her existence.
That smile is big, bright and beautiful, isn’t it? That smile is something she is complimented on daily. Did you know she’s practiced it in the mirror over and over again until it looked believable to not only everyone else, but to herself as well?
Did you know she’s in pajama clothes 99 percent of the time because pants hurt her even more? She wants so bad to document the one percent through pictures.
Did you know she always has her arms crossed to hide the bruises the IVs caused?
Did you know that behind her fragile mold and brave smile, she is scared?That she constantly questions her worth? That every negative comment from people just chips away at her already fragile self-esteem?
Did you know she critiques every picture she ever takes because she feels like she isn’t pretty?
Did you know she wants so badly to be heard, to be acknowledged? That every failed doctor visit has weighed her down? That she is tired of being stuck in the same four walls every day, wondering if her existence even matters? That she is screaming out but no one hears her?
She feels broken. She feels fragile. She feels scared. She feels weak. She feels sick.
But you couldn’t see all of that, could you? A picture holds a thousand words – if you look closely, maybe, just maybe, you’ll see them.
I urge anyone who is reading this to look around you. Study people. You’ll learn a lot. Don’t judge, just watch. Realize clothes, makeup and even a smile can hide a lot. People wear their story on their face – do you see it?
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My Name is Gage Paslay and I am 27 years old. I’ve been struggling with this invisible illness called Endometriosis since I was 12 years old. It’s chronic and I deal with pain everyday. There is no cure for it so it will forever be a part of me and it’s something i’m going to have to deal with for the rest of my life. I have good days and bad. It takes 7 plus years just to receive a diagnosis and its often misdiagnosed. Over the years i’ve received different diagnosis and i’ve been on countless medications and treatments that haven’t worked. Luckily, I was finally diagnosed correctly In December of 2016 by laparoscopy, the only way to determine if you have it or not. However, it made my symptoms worse and I am now looking into excision surgery. My blog is really about bringing awareness to this debilitating chronic invisible illness. 1 in 10 people assigned female at birth have Endometriosis and so many of them haven’t received a diagnosis yet or they are waiting to have another surgery. Endometriosis impacts people in almost every aspect of their lives. How, when and if we can have children. How our cycles work and how long they may last. It gives us pain sometimes so debilitating we can’t even get out of bed in the morning. It messes with our mood. It also impacts our relationships with family and friends. It sometimes overpowers us and defines who we are. So this page is about me speaking out for myself and for everyone struggling from any kind of chronic illness. You aren’t alone. Together, we have each other. I know what its like to have no one, to feel like you are stuck in a dark hole and no one is willing to pull you out. I’ve been there. I want to show light to people who are struggling, I want to encourage others to speak up and stand up for themselves. This disease shouldn’t define us and it shouldn’t control us. You shouldn’t feel guilty for being sick because it’s not your fault. I struggle everyday AND i’ve survived every bad day I thought I couldn’t get through..I’m rising up everyday and so can you. If you’re interested in finding out more about Endometriosis, watch my videos, read my blogs and follow my journey. If You are a Endometriosis Warrior like me, follow me. Share them with your friends and family. React to them. My voice is one in many but I’m determined to make sure its heard. This is me taking a stand against anyone who has ever told me “Its all in my head” or “I’m overreacting” or “It ’s just period cramps”. #I’llRiseUp.
gagepaslay