I SEE YOU

To those living with chronic illness:

I see you feeling overwhelmed, defeated, and dismissed at every turn. Most of all, I see your physical and emotional suffering.

You're not imagining the loneliness. We can feel isolated and alone in a room full of people, even when we know they love us. I get it. It's hard to explain what this is like to someone who hasn't lived it, and exhausting to keep trying.

If you're angry, be angry. It's okay. We have plenty to be angry about. But try not to let those feelings own too much of you. Anger only gets a piece of you, and the rest belongs to HOPE.

If no one in your life can see you, I do. I'm proud of you. Getting through a day like yours takes more strength than most people will ever know.

I know because I've been there. I will never forget the night I was alone in a dark room, crying in my bed, more desperate than I had ever been. That's when I made myself a promise: let me survive, and then thrive, and I will help guide others and give hope back where it's been lost. That promise is why Rise Above Lyme exists.

So please hear this, even if no one else has said it to you lately. You ARE worth fighting for. You are NOT a burden. You ARE enough, and you DO enough. People heal every day, and your day is coming.

You don't have to do this alone. Thousands of us understand what you're facing, and you're welcome in our support groups: https://www.riseabovelyme.com/support-groups

You can and will RISE ABOVE. 💜