March is Endometriosis awareness month, and with that in mind I'm sharing a couple of videos. While these aren't directly speaking about Endometriosis, they are about a condition that many with Endo (including myself) have long struggled with: Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS), a neuroimmune disease.
Notice: This video might be triggering if you find it true to your own experience. I personally found it extremely validating...that kind of validating where you cry deep from your gut, letting out pain that you've long carried and buried. That kind of validating where you watch something on repeat, just to hear that confirmation one more time. Again. And again. Because it was denied to you for so damn long.
If you (thankfully) can't personally identify with this video, I encourage you to watch it anyway, to educate yourself about what your friend, family, or co-worker may be going through. Your understanding could mean the world to them.
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This video was posted in 2018 by Elizabeth Sparrow. She said, "The Golden Girls is my favourite TV show of all time... Between 1985 and 1992, the seven seasons covered a range of topics, all of which are still relevant today. It was created by US TV producer Susan Harris. Susan suffered during the 1980s and, I believe, is still suffering now with what is termed predominantly in the US as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. It is also known as Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/neuroimmune disease. The historical waters pertaining to said disease are murky in the extreme, and there is a wealth of information on the internet about its thought origin and the subsequent damage caused by medical professionals... Such neglect and life-threatening abuse is still ongoing today, twenty-nine years after this storyline aired... AWARENESS of this brutal, unforgiving, unrelenting and cruelly debilitating disease is paramount, in order to move forwards with EFFECTIVE treatment.
I have selected the relevant sections from this special two-part episode Sick and Tired, from Season Five, which aired in 1989, to highlight how much HASN’T changed, as well as draw attention to the poignant words spoken by Dorothy throughout, and most especially at the end.
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I am astonished that this episode was written and played on such a popular show so long ago. What a validation. And how sad that things are basically still the same. I wish I'd seen this 20+ years ago, when I was 17, 14, even 12, when I started getting hit with this and other invisible diseases that came along with it.
Here is the link to the video. I also strongly encourage watching this TED talk by Jennifer Brea. In my own multi-decade journey of living with misunderstood chronic conditions, this video from Brea was one of the most cathartic things I had ever viewed, along with her documentary Unrest, which I also highly recommend.
Hopefully tides turn and invisible illness becomes better understood...and even when it is not understood, there is at the very least less dismissal or blaming patients for their conditions. Ahead of that, awareness is vital. To that end, as Elizabeth Sparrow noted, Please share FAR and WIDE.
Thank you.
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