I think I’ve had maybe three pain-free days in the last decade. Two dozen surgeries, hundreds of dollars of medications a month, and so many dr appts, I’m recognized by name at the hospital and clinic.

The most impacting thing I’ve ever read regarding this is “you are NOT your disease.”

I’m not a victim, I don’t have to be limited (beyond the obvious–you won’t see me running marathons or competing in the Ultimate Fighting Championship…), and after years of defining myself as “I have _______,” I say “I’m a Dad, a husband, a friend, oh and I have this medical condition that is kind of a pain in the A** sometimes.”