To Every Mother Who Has a Child With Chronic Pain

I want to say two simple words: thank you!

I know it’s hard to watch your child when they’re in pain. I also know what it’s like to know your child will always have pain. Whether you call it prolonged or long-lasting, chronic pain means forever. It’s something no parent wants their child to deal with.

Thank you to my mom for being my rock. For sitting with me for hours in the emergency room when we both knew you had a million other things that needed to be done. Thank you for continuing to search for answers after every previous doctor said they didn’t know what was wrong with me and for taking me to doctors’ appointments almost every week. You saw the doctors more than our own family.

And speaking of doctors, thank you for finding the best team of doctors in the world. Sitting with me through every test and surgery probably got old fast, but you were always the first one who would take me to the hospital. You saved up your hard-earned vacation days because you worried that anything could happen in a short period of time, whether it was a doctor appointment, a trip to the ER or an admission. 

You sat with me through a week-long hospital admission as I underwent a risky treatment because you knew it was possible for me to feel better. Watching your child go through this wasn’t easy in any way. Thank you for staying positive when I lost hope, for keeping an open mind, for always encouraging me and for never letting me quit.

Thank you for being a shoulder to lean on and wiping away every one of my tears while you wiped away your own, often behind closed doors. For listening to me while I was in tears away at college because I couldn’t be a normal student. You’re the only one who I can count on to make me laugh so hard that my stomach and cheeks hurt. You make me forget about the pain, even if it’s just for a minute. You were willing to stay at home with me because I was in too much pain to go out with my own friends.

Thank you for fighting for me and always staying by my side when I felt no one else was. You always remind me that my illness doesn’t control me, I control it.

To every mother out there who has a child with chronic pain, thank you! We really do appreciate everything you do for us even though it may not look like it at times. We couldn’t have made it this far without you, and we will continue to need you in the future.