Change used to make me anxious. At a young age, I was forced to confront the thought, “I may actually die”. My illnesses were bad, so dying was a real possibility. Did I want to spend whatever days I (potentially) had left worrying if I was going to die or not? No...I wanted to spend ALL of those days enjoying the life that I lived NOW. I’m obviously still alive and overcame this part of my life...but that way of thinking ha...

“You only have 3 months to live.” At 14 years old, life became more serious. Life became less simple. My day-to-day life revolved less around being a teen and more around staying alive. That’s not something any teen should have to worry about, but I did. I always wondered “why me?” Why do all these other kids get to be kids when my life has to be so difficult? That’s when it hit me. This is MY life. This isn’t anyone else’s. I...

I’m tired of all these diets being compared. ⠀ Seriously, when did it become a competition to see which diet makes you the best human being?⠀ “Paleo? But have you you tried keto?”⠀ “You’re eating gluten-free the wrong way!” ⠀ ”You’re vegetarian? Why not vegan?” ⠀ Gluten-free, vegan, paleo, keto, and whatever other new trend is out…who effin’ cares? As long as you are eating the way that makes YOU feel best, just keep doing...

“No one will love you because of your illnesses.” ⠀ In my opinion, abuse comes in many forms, but one of the worst kinds of abuse is the abuse that you disregard; The hurtful words that you start to believe yourself.⠀ I remember the overwhelming despair, sadness, and belief that these words said to me were true. These constant comments truly affected my future relationships and made me believe I didn't deserve something...

It’s so funny how bad I wanted to fit in and be like other people growing up. I mean I was a teen who was ALWAYS sick so you bet I was trying hard not to be noticed. “I don’t want people looking at me for my illnesses” I’d always say. Why would any of us? I stayed in my head so much about my health. I worried so much what people thought of me and how my life was so different from everyone else’s. Even my closest friends fel...