100+ Relatable Signs of Chronic Illness.

For the past year or so I have been writing down my relatable signs of chronic illness every time one would pop into my head.  The list steadily grew – to over 100 – until I finally felt ready to share it with the world.  Some are funny, some are sad, and some are a bit specific to lupus or autoimmune diseases.  Hopefully you’ll find at least a few to be relatable and feel a bit less alone on this chronic illness journey.

Oh, and if it seems like a lot of this list is about medication, that’s because a lot of my life is about medication these days.  (Will it work?  How long will it take to work?  How much does it cost?  Can I live with these side effects?  And so on.)

 

 

You might have a chronic illness if:

You can technically function after 9pm but it’s not pretty.

You are regularly too tired to bathe.

You use candles not to be romantic but because you suffer from light sensitivity.

You’ve ever bumped into a door on accident and regretted it for three days.

Your heating pad (or ice pack) goes wherever you go.

You no longer think you look ridiculous with ice packs all over your body.  (Ice packs are the new black, y’all.)

Your HSA card holds the first slot in your wallet.

Being in constant pain has raised your blood pressure.

Your medicine cabinet is more of a pantry.

 

 

You might have a chronic illness if:

You’ve given up on compiling a complete, accurate record of your medical history – there’s just too much information.

You get the same questions from the pharmacy tech every month (do you know how much this medicine costs??!).

You get the same questions from the receptionist at the doctor every few months (your copay is $100?!).

You are acutely aware of your weight because they insist on taking it at every appointment.

You have excellent pronunciation skills when it comes to medication names.

Your SO has ever recoiled after touching a spot where you’ve just applied cream, gel, or ointment.

You measure your life in doctors appointments.  (For example, I have three months until my next appointment, by then I’d like to lose five pounds.)

Your reluctance to take medicine for your condition has evolved into deep gratitude that said medication exists.

You eat when you’re not hungry just so you can take your meds.

You have a favorite doctor (and a least favorite).

 

Photo via Pexels licensed under CC0.

 

You might have a chronic illness if:

Strangers regularly ask why you look sad.  (By the way, strangers, don’t do this.  It doesn’t help.)

You regularly sport unshaven legs because the process of shaving them is not worth the pain it causes.

You’ve ever dropped a pill in a hard to reach spot but had to go after it because you know how much it costs.

You carefully ration your energy (or spoons) each day.

You’d love to have a dollar for every time someone has asked if you’ve tried [some form of exercise].

You leave pain pills sitting on your nightstand in case you wake up in the middle of the night and need them.

You’re an expert at giving urine samples.

Eye drops are more than important eye makeup.

 

 

You might have a chronic illness if:

You immediately text your SO out of excitement if you get a normal medical result.

You are surprised when you actually get to follow through with plans instead of canceling.

Your budgeting process has become, “What can I afford after I cover all of my medical costs?”

Your pill schedule interferes with your nap schedule.

You have ever been so desperate for relief that you were willing to try almost anything for your pain (and you’ve been infuriated when people try to exploit your vulnerability to sell you rubbish products).

You’ve connected with someone immediately because you share a diagnosis.

It’s so much harder for you to have fun now than it used to be.

Sneezing hurts.  A lot.

You’re thankful for things that haven’t gone wrong with your body yet.

Once a week (or month) you have a pill sorting party.

 

 

You might have a chronic illness if:

You have a meltdown when they change the shape, size, or color of one of your medications.

You have turned an around an hour into a trip because you forgot a medication.

You’re too busy getting your life saving medications to engage with people who are against “Big Pharma”.   (Of course, there are things wrong with the US pharmaceutical situation, but that’s not going to stop me from taking my medications.)

The drug interaction checker website might as well be your homepage.

You think, “I’ll have the energy to shower tomorrow” for several days in a row.

You text your chronic illness friends when it’s raining or really cold and ask how their joints are doing.

You never go anywhere without a little bottle of travel pills (or maybe even a big bottle).

You get down on the floor to do your physical therapy exercises and then just lay there because you are so tired.

 

 

You might have a chronic illness if:

You get way too many calls and texts from the pharmacy.  (Does anyone else find the CVS auto-texts to be aggressive?  “Your pharmacist filled your prescription three days ago.  PLEASE PICK IT UP TODAY.” Yikes.)

You always answer the phone because it might be your doctor/nurse/pharmacist.

You have to take periodic tox screens to receive your pain medicine.

You have dropped your pain pill and been unable to find it when you really need it.

You sometimes have to give yourself a pep talk to get off the couch.

You’ve ever been suddenly, unexpectedly immobilized.

You can instinctively tell when someone is about to give you a bad blood draw.

Your genuine excitement of seeing a friend is still barely enough to help you get past the physical burden of meeting up with them.

 

 

You might have a chronic illness if:

You’ve taken three showers in one day just because they provided some pain relief.

You are too tired to eat dinner by the time you finish making it.

Related: Tips for Cooking with Chronic Pain.

You compare lab results with your friends.

You’ve had to ask your SO to cut your fingernails because your fingers hurt so much.

The second waiting room in the doctor’s office has become your nemesis.

You repeat the phrase, “I’ll get to it eventually”, all the time.

You plan your day around when your pain medicine stops working.

You have left the pharmacy with a huge bag of medication.

You are frequently exhausted within an hour of waking up.  Or when you wake up.  Or if you feel exhausted most of the time.

 

 

You might have a chronic illness if:

You’ve had to redefine some of your personal standards of cleanliness.

You’re constantly wondering how you are going to do what you need to do (especially as a parent with chronic illness).

You are so tired of hearing doctors say there’s nothing they can do for a specific problem. (And, every time a doctor has said that to me it has not been true – which is unacceptable.)

You rarely drive places alone because you’re afraid your pain will flare up and you won’t be able to get back home.

You have a list of hilarious (and not so hilarious) things you’ve said or done due to brain fog.

You have a both gratitude and hatred for prednisone.

It seems like you’ve tried just about every legitimate thing there is to try for your chronic illness (and maybe some less legitimate ones too).

It’s been years since you had a zero pain day.

You’ve ever asked someone else if something is normal for their body or not because you don’t have a baseline for things like that anymore.

Grocery delivery services are your new best friend.

 

 

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You might have a chronic illness if:

To you, pre-med means preemptively medicating.

Even your best days are a significant struggle.

You’ve had to come to your doctor with potential solutions for your medical problems when it should be the other way around.

You’ve ever been filled with jealousy after observing people who live without crippling pain.

You no longer think twice about taking a handful of pills in front of others.

You know what it’s like to take one extremely small step after another until somehow you make it through an hour and then an entire day.

You never would have found the reservoir of strength deep inside you to face your chronic illness if you didn’t have to.  And you get really angry when people say they could never do it.  (We don’t have a choice.  You wouldn’t either.  Don’t make us feel worse by reminding us how hard it is.)

Related: In the Depths of My Sickness with Lupus.

You have seen a very wide assortment of pill bottle sizes.

 

 

You might have a chronic illness if:

You are almost used to being disappointed.  Almost.

You’ve lost a lot of friends since the onset of your chronic illness.

You’ve accidentally run out of medication and suffered until you were able to get a refill.

You’ve ever “translated” side effects  of your meds (I did so here).

You make an effort to see the positive side of your chronic illness whenever possible.

Your SO has struggled to be a caregiver (or, sadly, given up completely).

You know that COBRA can be a nightmare.

Travel is a huge risk for you health wise (but some of us do it anyway).

 

 

You might have a chronic illness if:

You have thought you were just waiting out a flare and things will get better in a week or so but eventually you realize that this is your life now.

You never thought life would be this much of a struggle.

You’ve come up with some really interesting ways to describe the pain you’re feeling instead of using the pain scale.  (I once said that it felt like there were steel plates in my knee that had been misaligned and were cutting into the surrounding areas – instead of saying 6/10).

You know what it’s like to be too tired to sit up even though you haven’t gotten out of bed yet.

You’ve ever been terrified that you left your daily pills at home.  (I don’t worry about leaving the stove on, now I worry about leaving my pills behind.)

You’ve had difficulty traveling because of your medication.

You use scissors to complete small tasks, like opening the paper towel roll, because your fingers hurt so much.

You have learned to graciously accept help whenever it is offered.

 

 

You might have a chronic illness if:

You suffer from an inconvenient, frustrating, I-miss-jamming-out-to-music-in-my-car noise sensitivity.

A doctor, or many doctors, has said your symptoms were all in your head or they were merely a side effect of extra weight or anxiety.

A doctor told you pregnancy wasn’t possible because of your chronic illness (and, for some of you, it turns out it was).

You want to leave the USA mainly for healthcare reasons (even though that is actually quite difficult and not necessarily a fix all).

Related: An American Goes to the Doctor in Germany.

It’s taken you years to come to terms with the fact that you won’t be able to accomplish all the things you dreamed about as a healthy person.

The mental aspect of chronic illness surprised you.

Your fellow chronic illness friends are invaluable and save your sanity at times.

There has been a role reversal in your household chore situation.

You believe a good doctor is worth their weight in gold.

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If you enjoyed this post you might also enjoy my post: The Unfortunate Realities of Life with Chronic Illness.

Did you relate to any of these signs of chronic illness?  What would you add to the list?

100+ Relatable Signs of Chronic Illness. #lupus #chronicillness Share on X