“We can’t help everyone, but we can help somebody.”
– Pres. Ronald Reagan
“Recognizing and preventing men’s health problems is
not just a man’s issue. Because of its impact on wives, mothers, daughters, and
sisters, men’s health is truly a family issue.” –Congressman Bill Richardson
“If we sugarcoat, or worse yet,
turn a blind eye to an issue like Alzheimer’s because it makes us
uncomfortable, we will never understand its complexities.” - Scott Kirschenbaum, Filmmaker
“His headache was still sitting over
his right eye as if it had been nailed there.” ― Ian Fleming
Organizations that support
those who live with visible and invisible chronic illnesses choose a month of
awareness for various autoimmune diseases and chronic illnesses. June is a
special month to me because one of the Chronic Illnesses that the Chronic
Illness Community brings awareness to in June affects a family member who I
love very much. While, I am not ready to speak about the illness in public, I
am able to speak about it and honor my family member as I let everyone who
reads this blog know about the Chronic Illnesses that are brought to the
forefront in the month of June each year.
As
you glance or visit the websites of the diseases and illnesses below, ASK YOURSELF: Which of these Chronic Illnesses are familiar to me and which look
like a foreign language?
Please,
do not feel bad if you do not recognize the invisible Chronic Illnesses listed
below. I have learned a great deal while I have been promoting my Mrs. Mississippi
International platform “Chronically Content: Coping with Chronic
Illness-Release the Resentment, Choose Contentment.” I am not a medical
encyclopedia, so I depend on trustworthy, reliable websites and other forms of
Social Media, along with speaking with people who live with these diseases to
learn just a tiny bit about what each Chronic Disease is truly all about.
Because the general population and the medical community both need to learn
about Invisible Chronic Illness, I am making it my quest, “Angie’s Quest,” to
“Bring a Voice to the Silent Pain of Chronic Illness.” I
can tell you that I know one or more people, including close family and friends
who are now or have been affected by the Chronic Illnesses and Disease listed
below. Can you say the same?
June Awareness Months that I consider Invisible Chronic
Illnesses (although some illnesses are more well-known than others) include:
Scleroderma, or systemic sclerosis, is a chronic connective
tissue disease generally classified as one of the autoimmune rheumatic
diseases. The word “scleroderma” comes from two Greek words: “sclero” meaning
hard, and “derma” meaning skin. Hardening of the skin is one of the most
visible manifestations of the disease.
Aphasia is an acquired communication disorder that impairs a person's ability to process
language, but does not affect intelligence. Aphasia impairs the ability to
speak and understand others, and most people with aphasia experience difficulty
reading and writing.
Aphasia is a common complication with people who have
experienced Traumatic Brain Disorders (sudden
trauma that leads to brain damage). This form of
Aphasia develops quickly due to head injury or stroke.
Other forms of Aphasia may develop progressively, or slowly,
from brain tumors, brain infections, or dementia/Alzheimer’s. A person with Alzheimer's might have difficulty saying the correct
names for people or objects that were previously familiar. Speech might be
vague, and the person might use the words "it" or
"whatchamacallit" because he or she can't come up with the correct
word. The person might also have difficulty understanding what's being said,
repeating back what's been heard, or understanding what is read. In the later stages of the disease, the person might repeat
a word or sound over and over or echo things that have just been heard.
Myasthenia Gravis Awareness Month
Visit the Myasthenia Gravis Foundation of America, Inc. at www.myasthenia.org
Visit the Myasthenia Gravis Foundation of America, Inc. at www.myasthenia.org
Myasthenia gravis (pronounced My-as-theen-ee-a Grav-us) comes
from the Greek and Latin words meaning "grave muscular weakness."
Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an autoimmune disease that causes muscle weakness. MG) affects the neuromuscular junction, interrupting the communication between nerve and muscle, and thereby causing weakness.
A person with MG may have difficulty moving their eyes, walking, speaking clearly, swallowing breathing, depending on the severity and distribution of weakness. Increased weakness with exertion, and improvement with rest, is a characteristic feature of MG. In MG, the immune system attacks a receptor on the surface of muscle cells. This prevents the muscle from receiving the nerve impulses that normally make it respond. About 30,000 people in the United States
It can occur at any age, but is most common in women who are in their late teens and early 20s, and men in their 60s and 70s.
Scoliosis Awareness Month
Visit the National Scoliosis Foundation at www.scoliosis.org
To learn more about Scoliosis visit http://www.healthline.com/symptom/scoliosis
Scoliosis
is a spinal deformity that affects about 6 million people (2-3 % of the
population of the word’s population). Scoliosis impacts infants, adolescents,
and adults worldwide. The typical onset age of scoliosis is 10-15 years old. It
occurs equally between the male and female population. However, females are 8
times more likely to need more treatment for their scoliosis. Scoliosis can
impact a person’s quality of life causing limited ability to breath, limited
physical activity, and a loss of self-esteem. Over 600,000 visits to a doctor’s
office are made by scoliosis patients and tens of thousands need to wear a brace,
while nearly 40,000 need to undergo spinal surgery. A Scoliosis patient’s life
is worsened by the many health risks and unknowns of this disease and
unsuccessful or costly treatment.
Migraine and Chronic
Headache Awareness Month
Visit the National Headache Foundation at www.headaches.org/content/migraine-and-headache-awareness-month
Over 37 million people in the U.S.
National Cancer
Survivor’s Day (first Sunday in June of each year)
National Cancer Survivors Day is an annual, treasured
Celebration of Life that is held in hundreds of communities nationwide and around the world. It is a day for everyone, whether you're
a cancer survivor, a family member, friend, or medical professional. This day
provides an opportunity for all people living with a history of cancer –
including America
Men’s Health Week (the week of June each
year that ends with Father’s Day)
Visit the National
Men’s Health Network at www.menshealthweek.org
and www.menshealthmonth.org/week/index.html
The
purpose of Men’s Health Week is to heighten the awareness of preventable health
problems and encourage early detection and treatment of disease among men and
boys. This week gives health care providers, public policy maker, the media,
and individuals an opportunity to encourage men and boys to seek regular
medical advice and early treatment for disease and injury.
Deaf-Blind Awareness Week (the last week of June
of each year)
Visit the Helen Keller
National Center
This week focuses on increasing public awareness and understanding of deaf-blindness. According
to the Helen Keller National Center (HKNC), about 70,000 people have hearing
and vision loss. More than a decade ago, Deaf-Blind Awareness Week became an
event officially recognized by the Federal government.
I am writing about June’s Health Awareness Months and Weeks of 2014, because my parents, grandparents, in-laws, siblings, and close friends have lived or live with one of the illnesses listed above. If you live with any of these illnesses yourself, are a caretaker, a loved one of someone with these illnesses that organizations and people, like me, volunteer to do all that they can to bring awareness to--PLEASE SPEAK OUT!
Support the organization's cause; but, make sure it is a reputable organization. Talk to the medical community. Tell those fortunate enough to live in complete wellness exactly what it is like to live with a Chronic Illness that leaves you to wake up each morning and try to go to sleep each night with Chronic Pain. Whether your illness occurs occasionally or you live with it daily as I do with my degenerative arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, and cervical spinal stenosis, TALK, TALK, TALK.
It doesn't matter if people or if our doctors look at us like we are crazy. The only way to teach others about your individual Chronic Illness/Autoimmune Disease is to Vocalize Your Own World of Silent Pain and Chronic Illness.
--Chronically Content
--Philippians 4:11-12
Angie Russell Irvin
Mrs. Mississippi International 2014
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