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Q&A with Richelle Heacock: “Keep fighting! You never know when your breakthrough will come.”
Richelle Heacock runs a YouTube channel focused on awareness of disabilities, with an emphasis on spreading hope and love. Her video discussing viewer questions about how to interact with someone with a disability or someone who uses a wheelchair is very informative and insightful.
A car accident in 2010 left Richelle paralyzed, impacting her life and her identity as an athlete. Richelle worked as a volleyball coach for the first seven years following her accident, and is now focusing on her health and sharing her experiences and wisdom on YouTube.
I hope you’re encouraged by this conversation with Richelle on chronic illness, faith, and perseverance.
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Why I’m Making Christmas Cards in January
Since Christmas, I’ve still been in a Christmasy mood. Which has been nice because it has made the season feel like it’s lasted a little longer. I was very unwell Christmas day, so this has helped. I still felt like making Christmas things, and I’ve actually had a little bit of energy this month to do so.
It has also helped that my parents got us a Sizzix embossing/die cutting machine for Christmas, which has been so fun to play with. Plus, it’s made card making very easy. (And watching tutorials on YouTube for using fun card cutouts while I’m crashed in a recliner has been inspiring. It’s nice to feel like I’m learning something and getting creatively inspired, vs. just being stuck recuperating.)
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Letting God Choose A Word For The Year
In the past, I have resisted choosing a word for the year because it has always seemed so arbitrary. I’ve seen other people do that, and then they seem frustrated when the random word they chose hasn’t magically panned out over the year. It almost seems like setting yourself up for failure to decide the year will be a certain thing, and then get disappointed when it isn’t. Especially if that word is a vague hope, vs. a goal you work towards.
But a few years ago, I listened to a podcast by the Ransomed Heart team about letting God choose your word/verse/theme for the year. (Here’s this year’s podcast on that topic.)
I found this perspective so refreshing and have enjoyed praying about what word and Bible verse God has for me each new year since. It has been a great practice for growing closer to God and bringing my plans and hopes for the year to Him.
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Brain Fog Broke My Internal Editor
Fibromyalgia has impacted my ability as a writer, and I’m just starting to understand all the ways it has. I’ve been trying to express it for awhile, with the irony being that it takes way more effort now for me to express anything. Brain fog has made it extremely hard for me to objectively edit my work. It’s like the editing part of my brain is broken.
Blogging has been much harder than I thought it would be, for reasons I didn’t expect. I knew energy to write was going to be a challenge, in addition to fighting through brain fog to express myself. But I wasn’t expecting to have so much trouble evaluating the quality of my work.
I was given a great piece of advice
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To the Christian Who Feels Sad at Christmastime—Here’s What’s Helping Me
We’re getting real on the blog today.
I want talk about struggling with feelings of sadness around Christmas, something that can impact anyone, not only those of us with chronic illness.
In a way, this feels a bit like a taboo subject. I kind of worry about admitting to this struggle out of fear that people will think I’m not grateful for all Christmas represents (it is Jesus’ birthday after all!) or that my sadness means I somehow dislike Christmas (which certainly is not the case!)
I’ve struggled over the past several holiday seasons, and a lot of it has had to do with getting used to my limitations due to chronic illness. Christmas is one of my favorite holidays, so in addition to struggling with not feeling happy, I’m also struggling with not feeling quite like myself. My love for Christmas is a part of who I am, so this sadness is yet another way my chronic illnesses impact my identity.
And I think as Christians we can sometimes feel pressure to feel or act happy 24/7, so feeling sad this time of year adds another layer of complexity—I feel guilty about it!
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Q&A with Calina: “Arthritis can happen to young people, too.”
Calina is a dear friend of mine who is super tech savvy, loves video games, good movies, and practicing hospitality. We met in college at a Bible study hosted by a mutual friend. She took me to my first ComicCon several years ago, which was incredible!
Calina graciously agreed to be my guinea pig—I mean, my first interviewee on this blog!
It was a fun interviewing her and learning some new things about her (which is pretty awesome considering we’ve known each other over a decade!). I think you’ll be encouraged by her story—she has gone through osteoporosis, Crohn’s disease and arthritis plus some major injuries and surgeries, but her joy and humor is so life-giving and a beautiful testimony of what it looks like to trust God even when we don’t understand.
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A Chronic Illness Gift Guide Based On Love Language
Gifts are extra-special if you gear them towards your friend or loved one’s love language. I’ve compiled ideas to help you do just that in this chronic illness gift guide!
Those of us with all the complexities and uncertainties of chronic illness can often feel misunderstood and even invisible, so it’s especially meaningful when you take the time to tailor a gift for us.
As I mentioned in my post about easy, low-cost gift ideas, picking a gift based on someone’s love language helps them to feel seen and understood.
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Low-Cost Low-Stress Gift Giving When You’re Chronically Ill
As Christmas approaches, I wanted to share some ideas for inexpensive and low-stress gift giving. Being chronically ill often means you’re watching your budget and conserving energy, so spending a lot of time and money hunting for gifts is not a great idea. The point is to let those you love know you are thinking of them and care about them, and a simple, well-chosen gift can do that perfectly! So I’ve rounded up ideas that are low cost, or easily made without using up all your energy.
The best way I’ve found to give meaningful gifts is to make sure I’m gifting something in someone’s love language. If you’ve never read The Five Love Languages, I highly recommend it! (I read the original, but there is a singles edition, and other versions available too.) The book breaks down the way people best receive love into five categories: Words of Affirmation, Acts of Service, Receiving Gifts, Quality Time, and Physical Touch.
My default way to show love is through gift-giving, so in years past I’ve created a lot of stress for myself by thinking I have to find the *perfect* gift.
