Dear Thyroid™ � Chronic Snarkopolist

Chronic Snarkopolist: How to Create Safe Space (& Beauty) During Chronic Illness

Melissa Travis — Wed, 09 May 2012 20:31:31 +0000

Hello my loves! I have missed you! Recently I presented at a conference about being a caretaker. While I was there I was also able to listen to panels and take in many ideas that resonated with me personally. I wanted to share some ideas with you. One man who presented, Milt Greek, said, “Schizophrenia [...]

Chronic Snarkopolist: Finding a New Doctor – Teamwork

Melissa Travis — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 23:22:04 +0000

Hello my loves! I have discussed before picking a new doctor. But it has come up again. This time I needed to fit a specialist into a team of established and trusted specialists and they all needed to collaborate and work well together. After years of seeing my old doctor, one I love and trust, [...]

Chronic Snarkopolist: My Own Worst Enemy

Melissa Travis — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 23:47:37 +0000

Hello my loves! Some days the sky falls on our heads. And some days we are heroes. When the sky is falling I often wonder if my black cloud is acting as a magnet. “Why are people poking me with sticks?” I wonder. Other times good things have happened to me and I have not [...]

Chronic Snarkopolist: Cycles of Illness – Here and Gone Again (and Again)

Melissa Travis — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 20:10:56 +0000

Hello my loves! I have taken time off and missed you very much. I have been sick and needed to pull myself together. And then I was afraid to write. Mostly because I didn’t know what to say anymore. Then I realized that you would understand. And so I writing to you now. I am [...]

Chronic Snarkopolist: When the Tables Turn

Melissa Travis — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 20:01:45 +0000

Hello my loves! Some days I consider what I have experienced with loss and pain and it angers me. Some days I am still experiencing moments of health and loss and I feel like it simultaneously brings up fresh emotional wounds during health crisis. And other days, I feel as though I can actually be [...]

Chronic Snarkopolist: The Art of Living in Pain

Melissa Travis — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 20:38:30 +0000

Hello my loves! I recently thought about how I have addressed chronic pain as a caretaker of family members with cancer. And I thought about how I engage in chronic pain management in myself. I have even cried in front of my friends because of pain. The science of pain management is not well understood [...]

Chronic Snarkopolist: Don’t You Dare Make Me Soup!

Melissa Travis — Thu, 03 Nov 2011 22:03:08 +0000

Hello my loves! Does being a patient make you feel vulnerable? Does letting people see you when you are “sick” make you feel that way? It often shocks me how much I can roll through an MRI or PET scan all alone. I can drive myself there, deal with the experience, and come home and [...]

Chronic Snarkopolist: Allowed to Have a Good Day!

Melissa Travis — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 20:18:28 +0000

Hello my loves! I once told a doctor, “I’m allowed to have a good day.” And I meant it. We all are. Not only are we allowed to have horrific terrible times, but we are allowed to have FABULOUS days as well. And when we have terrible days we need support and love. When we [...]

Chronic Snarkopolist: Wearing a Mask

Melissa Travis — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 06:43:34 +0000

Hello my loves! As I have gotten back into my life I have found myself doing several things. I have found myself feeling vulnerable around my sicker friends – afraid to admit that I am DOING some activities again. And I have been shy around my very healthy active friends because I don’t want them [...]

Chronic Snarkopolist: The Conundrums within Patient and Caretaker Advocacy

Melissa Travis — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 19:40:19 +0000

Hello my loves! I’ve been thinking a great deal about what it means to “advocate.” In this instance I’m specifically referring to patient advocates. I have said in the past that I can only see improved access to healthcare when advocacy reaches all areas of medicine – patients, caretakers, nurses, doctors, pharmacists, and all services [...]