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When the Hospital Staff Treated Me With Respect

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Right now, I am laying in a hospital bed staying at least for one night. My service dog is laying on the bed at my feet, and my friend has been allowed to stay with me. She takes out my service dog as needed.

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No one has questioned my rare diseases.

My nurses have been kind. My doctor doesn’t make the fact I am a transgender man a big deal.

I have Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS), POTS, and mast cell activation disorder (MCAD) , among other things that go with this not-so-golden trio of illnesses.

I am in the hospital because I had a reaction due to MCAD, and I am having POTS issues as well.

Being treated respectfully shouldn’t be a big deal, but it is for various reasons. It can be an issue when you’re trans (I’m in a Catholic hospital), have multiple chronic illnesses, and an abuse history.

Yet so far in this system, I have had no issues.

I will go back to this one if I have flare-ups again. Why? I am not just my disease — I am a person.

Spoonies, please stand up for yourself, because you deserve respect and proper treatment, just like I do.

the author's dog lying on their hospital bed

Originally published: June 25, 2018
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