HAWMC 2013 Day 30: Recap!

 

 

Welcome to the Health Activist Writer’s Month Challenge brought together by WEGO Health – a social network for all health activists.  Again, I am participating in the annual Writer’s Month Challenge in which I will be writing about my health activism and health condition based upon prompts given.

Today’s prompt reads as follows:

You made it!  30 posts in 30 days!  Today, write a recap of your experience.  What was your favourite prompt?  Least favourite?  What have you learned? 

Well, I did it!!  For the second consecutive year I have managed to complete all 30 days with no need to use the ‘free-pass’ cards!!  It feels like a huge accomplishment especially as I have experienced several bad days.  Preparation seemed to be the key this year, especially as I am busy with other activities such as the Monday and Wednesdays groups that I am involved with and the day out once a week with my Personal Assistant means that I am not in the house all of the time, so I had to write many of the prompts before the day that it was published.

Just like last year, I immensely enjoyed the month-long writing challenge – I loved the challenge of all the prompts.  The prompts are not only a lot of fun to write but I also feel that the prompts enable us to look and write about our particular health conditions differently than we would normally.  For example, some of the prompts required me to write about topics that I might never would normally.  For example, the topic of burnout was selected to be discussed from one of the prompts, and if it wasn’t for the HAWMC I might never have written about the topic.  One of the prompts that I found particularly challenging was the Acrostic Poem from Day 13 (Acrostic Poem of my Health Condition) – it wasn’t necessarily the subject matter that was challenging as the whole blog is about living with my health condition, but the form itself.  I haven’t written a poem in many years so it was quite a challenge being asked to write one – just glad that I prepared in plenty of time and was able to write a decent attempt!

The prompts like always were a mixture of being, fun, challenging as well as being thought-provoking.  One prompt I really enjoyed, but initially found very challenging was the post regarding Adversity (“The flower that blooms in adversity…”).  I initially found it very difficult to write especially regarding when I bloom best.  However, although I found it challenging, I thought in the end it was one of my favourite and best written post!  I also loved the prompt which asked us to ‘spread the love’ and thank some of our favourite health activists; this was such a great opportunity for me to thank those who have supported me and helped me through some tough times with illness (Sharing the Love!  I would like to thank…).

I would also thankful for the Wordless Wednesday posts, as it gave a break from writing long posts and was fun coming up with creative photographs and drawings to dictate something without using words!  Would love to make this a regular feature but would need some ideas!  If anyone has links or ideas to do this please comment below and share!

Least favourites?  Perhaps some of the prompts that I had written about during previous writing challenges such as the post regarding caregiving (Carers, How to treat those you care for), and discussing favourite social networks (Why I Love to Tweet) to name but two.

Anyhow, regardless of the good and the bad through the experience of this writing challenge it was a challenge that I thoroughly enjoyed and look forward to taking part next year!   Thank you WEGO Health!

What did you think of my posts for the HAWMC?  What were your favourite posts to read?  Any you didn’t enjoy reading?  Loved to hear your views so please feel free to leave any comments/suggestions!

HAWMC 2013 Day 1: What Got Me Started on The Blogging Journey…

Welcome to the Health Activist Writer’s Month Challenge brought together by WEGO Health – a social network for all health activists.  Again, I am participating in the annual Writer’s Month Challenge in which I will be writing about my health activism and health condition based upon prompts given.

The first prompt reads as follows:

Why you write – tell us a little about why you write about your health online and what got you started.

Well, I got started writing about my health condition online on this very blog just over a year ago.  For years, before I got my definitive diagnosis, I was for years banded around the healthcare system visiting various consultants in different specialities, hearing the “it’s all in your head” diagnosis again and again.  Throughout this time, I felt scared, alone, isolated and so on.  The loneliness and isolation I felt was extreme – I felt as though I was the only one that was going through the pain of misdiagnosis and all of the symptoms that I have had for so long they were like old friends.

And so after my diagnosis, and joining various support groups; I felt it was time to start a blog – a place in which I can share my story and let other know that they are not alone.  Perhaps also hope – hope that one day they will too find that diagnosis that they have long been searching for.  It was actually a close friend, someone who also write her own fantastic blog, whom I met in a support group in which I am a member of who first suggested that I start the blog; encouraging me to share my story with others.  I had already regularly wrote in a journal, and felt a public blog was a natural progression for my writing as well as raising the profile for neurological conditions, which still seems to be under-discussed and not really publicised the same way as other conditions.

My condition is also unusual.  It is so unusual, that I have yet to meet anyone who has been diagnosed with the same condition, and so by writing the blog, I can maybe one day meet others with the same diagnosis.  However, this is not so important as I have not learnt that it is not the diagnosis that connects us but instead the experience of living with chronic illness.  There are many facets within chronic illness that are a part of the majority of chronic conditions such as fatigue, depression, pain and so on.

Apart from keeping the blog up to date, I also regularly take part in the ‘Health Activist’ Chat (#HAChat) on Twitter, in which myself and other health activists discuss various topics relating to healthcare and health activism.  I have also written articles for the ‘Invisible Illness Awareness Week‘ and a forum called ‘Disability Sanctuary‘.  In addition, the blog has enabled me to initiate contact with others with brain lesions, a couple of whom also has lesions on their brain stem like me, and this would just not be possible without the blog.

This year sees me getting involved with the ‘Health Activist Writer’s Month Challenge’ for the second year.  I get involved not only for the challenge for writing for an entire month continuously, but in my opinion the original prompts also challenge me as a writer and blogger – making you think deeply about the conditions in which we live with and writing them in a way in which we wouldn’t normally discuss them.  In addition, the HAWMC also allows us all the opportunity to connect with other health bloggers and read more about their journeys with chronic illness.  I have had the wonderful opportunity to meet many other health activists and bloggers through WEGO Health and the HAWMC.

And there you have it – how I started with how I started blogging about my health condition!

HAWMC: A Reflection

Welcome to the very last post of the WEGO Health Activist Writer’s Month Challenge – a time to reflect on the last thirty days, writing everyday based on prompts provided.

I personally would like to thank WEGO Health for the opportunity to take part in the ’30 Days, 30 Posts’ Challenge.  The prompts provided allowed me the opportunity to think about my condition and the challenges associated with it in more detail and also made me think about my health, and the difficulties I face in more detail, and how I may be able to overcome them.  The HAWMC also challenged me as a writer, writing in different styles that I may not have used otherwise, and the ‘fun’ prompts such as the Haiku poem or the madlib was completely different to anything I have tried before.

My favourite prompt?  My favourite prompt was those using images to convey my health condition and health focus.  It was difficult at first, as my particular condition is ‘invisible’ but I found clever ways to portray the neurological condition I live with.  The Word Cloud was really fun, just choosing particular words or phrases that I associate with my condition, and the word cloud itself looked amazing.

The most difficult prompt?  One of them which I found most challenging, emotionally and bringing up painful memories from the past was the ‘Dear 16-year-old-me‘, although I found the Health Mascot also challenging, particularly as I am unable to draw, which my efforts probably showed!

Which ideas will you reuse? I am not sure whether I will reuse any of them, as I like to write fresh ideas or themes, so am not sure whether I would be able to reuse any of the prompts giving them a fresh perspective but will give the bonus prompts a go.

Who was your favourite fellow blogger?  I have several one that I have followed and read all of their prompts that they have written, finding them interesting, informative and inspirational.  One of them is Theresa, a close friend of mine, and as we have similar problems such as living with chronic dizziness I was really able to relate to her posts.  Another favourite is Katina, at Butterfly Lessons, a blog about ‘living a fabulous life with lupus’, a really interesting and uplifting read and love the positivity the blog exudes.  And my third favourite is Kim over at Hope Whispers, about living with a rare liver disease called Budd-Chiari Syndrome – another really positive and uplifting blog, and really highlights the importance of organ donation and is also really interesting reading about other illnesses or conditions different from your own.

Thanks again WEGO Health for the opportunity to take part in the ’30 Days, 30 Posts’ Challenge – I have enjoyed every minute, enjoyed even the prompts that challenged me.  And thank you for the opportunity to not only write about different aspects of my health condition but also the opportunity to write about other aspects of my life – after all we are not defined by our health conditions, illnesses or disabilities.  And thank you for challenging  and pushing me as a writer, maybe I have even become a better writer because of it.  Even though I have found some aspects and prompts very difficult, I DID IT!!!

HAWMC Day 4: I Write About My Health Because…

Hey Everyone,

I hope everyone is well today, I myself didn’t have a great night – legs were trembling really badly throughout the night which left me unable to sleep.  Anyway, today’s a brand new day – which means Day 4 of the WEGO Health Activist Writer’s Month Challenge, and today’s prompt says the following:

I write about my health because… Reflect on why you write about you health for 15-20 minutes without stopping

Okay, so why do I write about my health condition?  Well, my blog only started in January so I am still pretty new in the blogging community.

One of the main reasons why I started my blog as I wanted to educate people on my particular condition – long-standing brain stem lesion and spastic paraparesis.  I thought it was important to write about the condition as it seems to be very rare, and thought it may be of use to educate people on the condition.

I also thought it would be a good way to reach out to the ‘health community’ in order to gain support, friendship and knowledge from others that may be going through similar experiences.  In my life, I often feel lonely – being stuck in the house, especially when I’m on my own and thought starting a blog would be something that could occupy my time, giving me a ‘little project’ to help with the boredom and monotony in my life.

The idea of starting a blog was first suggested by a counsellor, writing a journal as a way of expressing my emotions and feelings, and the idea grew from there.  I decided to make my  journey public.

  I suppose I also want to educate people on disabilities – and that not all disabilities are visible, I have heard  great many stories of people with ‘invisible’ conditions having abuse thrown at them when using disabled parking – even though they had the necessary permits and had a legitimate excuse for using the disabled parking spaces.

Another story I read, concerned a gentleman who suffered with Ménière’s Disease, a vestibular condition which produces similar symptoms which I suffer from – dizziness, poor balance and co-ordination, and who was arrested for driving under the influence for alcohol after he was unable to walk in a straight line when asked to perform a sobriety test.  Therefore, it is important for those, like me suffering from a  chronic and life-long condition to stand up and speak out and to make people understand that just because a person may look fine and ‘normal’ does not mean to say they are – their disability or illness may be hidden underneath what we may be able to see.  Reminds me of the times of when I have gone out or mean to the doctor’s for an appointment, and I have had my crutch with me and having a few people stare at me, as if they were judging me and wondering why on earth I was using such an aid as I didn’t have a broken leg and I looked perfectly healthy.

 So, that’s my post for today, I hope you enjoyed reading.  Please leave a comment or message and let me know your thoughts or experiences.

Do you have your own blog or website?  What are the reasons for why you write?