Are They Listening?

Do you ever wonder if your friends or family are listening to you when sharing your challenges of living with psoriatic arthritis? There are times when I think they don’t get it at all, and then out of the blue someone will say something that restores my faith in humanity.

Music to my ears

A few weeks ago, I ran into someone I know while grocery shopping. While we are friends on Facebook, she hadn’t seen me in person in over 18 months. Even though she has seen my posts about my improvements, she was still in awe over the fact that I was able to grocery shop without my wheelchair. To be honest, so am I!

After we shared our astonishment and joy, she said something that nobody has ever said to me throughout my chronic life when they have encountered me in public. She said that she wouldn’t keep me long because she knew how hard just going grocery shopping must be for someone with chronic pain. Even though grocery shopping is no longer a physically taxing event for me, the fact that she recognized that it used to be and still could be made my heart go pitter-patter.

Somebody is listening

Sometimes we think that nobody is listening. Sometimes they aren’t, but you may be surprised by who is. This encounter reminded me of how important it is to share our challenges.

When we bottle up our emotions or hide our struggles, we can be sure that no one will understand. Whether it is online or in person, sharing our truth is the only way people will ever begin to comprehend the difficulty of living with a painful chronic illness like PsA.

Don’t be afraid to share your struggles or obstacles that you have overcome. Believe it or not, somebody is listening!