In most situations, it is almost impossible to recognize a chronic illness/condition just by looking at a person. This aspect of invisibility has a huge impact on how both the condition and the person are treated. A lot of times, it is even impossible for doctors to truly know what is going on inside of a sick individual's body. This brings about many challenges in peer, family, and medical interactions.
Students face a lot of pressure to be successful from both their families and peers. No matter the situation, there are always expectations that a students feels they must meet. When battling a chronic illness, it is much more difficult to meet these expectations.
In addition to physical symptoms there can be a huge affect on energy levels, ability to concentrate, and memory. All of which have a high impact on mental ability in the classroom. A student may often be deterred from meeting these goals because of their illness and it is hard for others to understand why. From the outside perspective the student looks completely fine. There are no outward signs of disease, or at least not any that are easily recognizable by a non medical professional. Therefore, it seems that the student could be faking it or exaggerating.
These accusations can be extremely damaging and are experienced at least once by anyone who has an invisible illness. It is important for those who do not experience an invisible illness to educate themselves on the complexities of an illness before speaking on it. The best way to learn is by asking someone who has the illness about their experience. Because everyone is different; there is only one expert on an individual's condition and that is themselves.
At times though, it is even hard for the individual to believe their own bodies. I experienced many periods during my struggle with Crohn's disease where I gaslighted myself endlessly. I would convince myself that I was actually getting better and the pain was less than yesterday. I wanted to think that it wasn't really that bad and I was just being a baby. In reality I was consistently getting worse. Sometimes, only being hospitalized would make me acknowledge the reality of my condition.
This aspect of invisibility makes the accurate perception of chronic illnesses very difficult in social, classroom, home, and even hospital settings. These difficulties result in students feeling frustrated with their inability to meet expectations; even those they have of themselves.
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