“On the outside I’m great, but inside, my body is trying to destroy itself.”
Chronic pain can include various types of debilitating pain all over your body.
"Chronic pain is one second feeling like you’re being stabbed in the back, the next like your bones are poking one of your internal organs, then your brain is getting hit with a hammer, and so on. Sometimes I forget that there's pain in one area until it’s moved to another part of my body at a different intensity. It’s sharp, then dull, then crushing. It’ll be your skin, then your bones, then your lungs, and it just keeps changing."
—mk19
NBC / Via giphy.com
And it can completely disrupt your normal functioning.
"When I’m having a particularly bad flare-up and my body is overwhelmed with pain, it’s like my brain starts flipping switches off: my hearing usually goes first, then my ability to feel different temperatures, then my speech and motor skills, then my sight gets blurry. Finally, I pass out."
Nickelodeon / Via giphy.com
It’s 100% real, and you shouldn’t say otherwise.
"Please know that when you doubt someone with chronic pain, it can make them doubt themselves. Sometimes I think, 'Well, if my doctor, friend, or family member is saying that I'm making this up, maybe I am. And that is ridiculous because the pain is strong and real."
—Georgia Nagel, Facebook
Warner Bros. / Via giphy.com