At times, it is easy to determine if somebody is having a problem. They may be suffering from a physical difficulty that easily shows on the outside, but that is not always the case. In fact, far more people suffer from what are known as “silent diseases” than those who have obvious difficulties.
Just because somebody is suffering from a silent disease does not mean that it is all in their head or that they can “snap out of it”. Those are some of the common misconceptions associated with these types of difficulties. In order to help you understand your friends and family members that suffer in this way, here are 9 things that people with silent diseases would like you to know.
1. We may not look sick but that doesn’t mean we are not experiencing pain.
It is estimated that one out of every two individuals in the United States suffers from a silent disease. Although the elements may not manifest themselves in a physical way, they do exist. Invisible diseases can include issues such as migraine headaches, brain disorders and Crohn’s disease. Never judge a person’s problems by what you can see on the outside.
2. Sometimes the invisible disease may affect our body chemicals, resulting in changes to our mood or temperament. It is not an excuse!
Some diseases, such as problems with the thyroid, are almost entirely internal. Those who suffer from the disease may have severe problems with their moods and internal symptoms, as it affects the hormone balance in the body. Don’t be surprised if we seem to feel sad or snap for no reason, there is a very good reason, it just lies under the surface.
3. Other parts of our body may also experience problems.
It doesn’t matter if the pain we are experiencing is on the outside or the inside, it will not be visible to you. Any part of our body may hurt at any given time, and there may be times when it just continues hurting without let up. Remember that it is not all in our head and at times, medication is not going to help. Don’t be surprised if we complain a little about this difficulty, it is real.
4. You may not like hearing about our issues but we don’t like speaking about them either.
There may be times when you see us react to the pain and other difficulties that we are experiencing. If you ask us what’s wrong, don’t be alarmed if we start talking about it. Like anybody with a disability, we want to discuss it so that we can vent the issue.
5. Don’t be offended if we cancel plans without advance announcement.
Any type of illness could crop up at any time and we often have to live according to those issues. As can be expected, even our silent illness may come up from time to time so if we cancel plans unexpectedly, don’t think that we don’t like you or that we’re just being flaky.
6. Our problems may be out of sight, but they are not out of our mind.
When you see somebody that has a physical ailment that is visible on the outside, you wouldn’t fault them for thinking about their problems from time to time. Even though you can’t see our issues on the outside, we do still think about them and we worry about our situation.
7. Please don’t remind us of what you can see associated with the ailment.
Some hidden conditions, such as hypothyroidism, can lead to uncontrolled weight gain. Other health conditions may make us go to the bathroom frequently. We know that we have these problems, and you don’t need to bring them up in casual conversation. There is nothing wrong with you being supportive and speaking positively, but avoid stating the obvious.
8. We know that you don’t truly understand our problem. We appreciate you being there for us.
It is amazing how frequently we may hear stories about other people who have similar problems. You may even feel the need to tell us about a problem that you experienced at some time! Although it is nice to talk about these things, it truly doesn’t help. We still have the problems that are hidden from view. If you know somebody that is dealing with the same problem as us, however, we may want to talk to them for emotional support.
9. Please have empathy
There is often nothing that can be done to stop the issues we are facing, but you can be there for us. If you are supportive, empathetic and understanding, it can go a long way to helping us with our problems.
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