The Things We Don't Say: An Anthology of Chronic Illness Truths

Chronically ill people don't always talk about it. Until now.

Spanning different ages, ethnicities, genders, sexual orientations, and diagnoses, forty-two authors from around the world open up in fifty true stories about their chronic illnesses and their search for answers, poor treatment by doctors, strained relationships with loved ones, self-doubt, and more. They share the warmth of support from family and friends, the triumph of learning coping mechanisms, and finding ways to live their dreams. These stories are honest, raw, and real, and if you have chronic illness, you will find comfort and companionship in these pages. For everyone else, if you have ever wanted to know more about your loved one's experience with chronic illness but didn't want to ask the wrong questions, this book will have some answers, and more importantly lead you to a new-found understanding.

Introduction
Part 1 | Relationships: Family, Friends, Dating, & Sex
A Flash of Blue | Shelia Bolt Rudesill
To the Friend Who Told Me that I Talk About My Illnesses Too Much | R.S. Nash
Yes, We Can: Sex and Chronic Illness | Kit Stubbs, PhD
Multiple Sclerosis: My Lost Connections | Sónia Lopes
This I Believe | Marcia Allar
One-Two Punch | Charity Cole
Part 2 | Experiencing the Emotions
Imagine | Michaela Shelley
This Is Hard | Julie Morgenlender
I Didn't Cry on My Birthday This Year | Tara A.
Chronic Contradictions | Wendy Kennar
Expecting Motherhood, Creating Self | Sarah Myers
Adventures in Snow Shoveling: January 9, 2016 | Danielle Lorenz
I Am Not My Cornea | Keidra Chaney
PTSD: The Illness I Couldn't See | Amy Oestreicher
An Echo Unheard | Deepti Dilip Kumar
Part 3 | The Medical Side: Diagnosis, Treatment, Doctors, & Hospitals
Pain | Heron Greenesmith
Going to the Emergency Department with a Chronic Illness | R.S. Nash
Miss Treated | Katherine Ernst
".. .Sixteen, Seventeen, Eighteen..." | Katie Hiener
The Tale of a POTSie | Bella
Chronic Illness Eugenics | chaya hazel caninsky
Pudendal Neuralgia | Atara Schimmel
The Monster Within | Annie Wittenberg
Part 4 | Acceptance: For Better or Worse
Good Morning | Kaitlyn M. Smith
Snakes & Accessibility Ramps | Alix Penn
Anxiety Is My Constant Companion | Devin Reynolds
What Is It Like? | Hannah Rembrandt
Forgive Yourself for Saying No | Glynis Scrivens
Forgive Yourself for Saying Yes | Glynis Scrivens
Grieving the Loss of Body | Bret Stephenson
The Superior Mutant's Victory Garden | Raven Kaldera
Growing Up with Asthma | Mark Ludas
Part 5 | Things We Wish We'd Known
Things Every Newly Diagnosed Patient Needs to Know | Dylan Gomez
Wishing I Had a Heads-Up on My Autoimmune Illnesses | Jamie Jasinski
Along the Way | Dess
I Wish I'd Known | Zoe A. Bateman
If I Had Known Then, What I Know Now... | Marcia Allar
Part 6 | What We Wish Folks Knew
Chronically Ill Teens | Michaela Shelley
All About the Pain | Nikki Albert
That's Why the Lady Was on Stamps | Litsa Dremousis
The Things That Go Bump...In Your Body | Lindsey M. Clouser
The Quandaries of Chronic Pain | Elin Walther
A Little Understanding | Mary Lee Evelyn Keeney
Part 7 | Others' Perceptions
No Different from Anyone Else | Glynis Scrivens
Chronic Pain Versus Masculinity | Bret Stephenson
The Importance of Representation: Why Using My First Cane Was Scary | Rebecca Bartlett
Hope's Visible in Me: How My Invisible Illness Is Actually Visible | Jessica Ward
High-Maintenance | Lindsey M. Clouser
We Don't Get Any Medals | Jane Lesley
My Journey for Answers: Because No One Will Care More About My Health Than Me | Julie Morgenlender

BonusGlossary
Index