Lauren Jonik is a writer and photographer in Brooklyn, NY. Her work has appeared in 12th Street, The Manifest-Station, Two Cities Review, Amendo, The Establishment, Bustle, Calliope and Ravishly. When she is not co-editing TheRefresh.co, she is working towards her Master’s degree in Media Management at The New School. Follow her on Twitter: @laurenjonik.
There is little doubt that chronic illness brings challenges above and beyond coping with symptoms. But, it is possible to live well while chronically ill.
Chronic illness and injury has taught me — is still teaching me — patience. These days are not a consolation prize for what I didn’t win, for where I didn’t or couldn’t succeed, for a better life I might have had if only…They are my life.
Whether or not to become a parent — or to try to become a mother — is one of the most defining decisions a woman faces. Yet, for some, it is not a decision her heart makes — it is one that her body makes for her.