Title reads Health and fitness the week I fell ill with severe ME. Photo of Char and friends walking in a park wearing pink fluffy bunny ears and carrying green balloons. By Chronically Hopeful

Health And Fitness: A Week Before I Fell Ill With Severe Chronic Illness

​Ironically my life was super busy and active during the weeks and months ​before the onset of what lead to my Chronic Fatigue Syndrome diagnosis. There seems to be the general belief that we are tired or lazy or that we have some sort of unhealthy aversion or fear of exercise, but nothing could be further from the truth! As we move towards ME Awareness Month (May), ​I wanted to share some of my health and fitness memories from the…

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The word Love lettered with while pen on pink paper. Pens lying around the picture on the table. Title reads, Art gallery, paintings, lettering and drawings from Feb 2019

Chronically Hopeful Art: Paintings, Lettering And Drawings From Feb 2019

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​This is the first in a new series of posts where I will share all the art I have worked on for the month. I hope to be consistent with it, but life with a chronic illness is anything but consistent, so don’t hold me to it. I am very grateful, though, that this month has been quite productive creatively and I am so pleased with the pieces that I have made. I hope you enjoy this little gallery too.…

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A girl sitting on her bed holding a cup of tea, resting her head on her knees. Title reads, I'm okay, seriously. How can I be physically disabled and not depressed? By Chronically hopeful

How Can I Be Physically Disabled And Not Depressed?

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I’d like to speak about my own mental health. I feel like some people misunderstand my condition, so I wanted to address the matter directly. Yes, I have a severely debilitating illness. Yes, I practically live in bed. No, I cannot go out and I cannot have visitors coming over without paying for it​, but I am okay. Seriously. I do not suffer from depression or anxiety or feel upset, or anything like that, about being ill and housebound. But…

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10 Important Life Lessons learned from Chronic Illness, by Chronically Hopeful. A woman sits by the window, gazing out while holding a cup of tea. She has shoulder length hair and is smiling contemplatively.

10 Important Life Lessons I Learned From Chronic Illness

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Last year was a tough one for many of us, but looking back I ​realised that I have learned many important lessons which make me stronger and ​better equipped for the year ahead. So although 2018 was a year of very high highs and very low lows​, there were many ​lessons scattered among both the trials and the triumphs. ​This is the way life goes – it is never linear and it’s always changing – but we can always look…

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