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The Story Behind My New Blog Name: Starlight through the Storm
Ta-da! You may have noticed that my blog has a new logo as well as a new name! I thought I’d share a behind-the-scenes look at the inspiration behind both. I hope this will give you more insight into what you’ll find on my blog, as well as help you know a little more about the person who runs it.
I’ve literally been trying to pick a name before I even started blogging—over two years ago! (Yep, my blog had its anniversary in March and I kinda let it slip by. Oops!) I’m sure glad I didn’t wait until I had the “perfect” name picked before I started my blogging journey. (I think you should dive into blogging even if you don’t feel 100% ready.)
From poems to PR pieces, the titles have always been a challenge for me. So I’ve been brainstorming (for, ahem, years)…how to choose a blog name that sums up living with chronic illness, and not just surviving but thriving? I wanted to choose a name that sounded specific enough but was also broad enough that it would allow me to talk about all the things that bring me joy when my health turns life upside down—such as my faith, my love of words (and books!) and creativity.
Here’s the story behind coming up with a name for this blog, and why it’s special to me.
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Create a Laughter as Medicine Kit
This post is all about ideas for adding more laughter to your life!
While laughter may or may not be the best medicine, it sure can make a difference.
I’ve been compiling a list of things that make me laugh, and it’s turned into a kind of first aid kit for making me feel better. Being intentional about cultivating joy and laughter has been even more important to me since I’ve been dealing with multiple chronic illnesses as well as chronic pain. Maybe you’re dealing with similar health challenges, or just looking for tips to improve your wellbeing. So I’m going to share ideas with you so you can make your own customized laughter kit!
Having a list of funny resources has been helpful because my brain is often fried due to chronic illness (hellooooo brain fog!). Instead of having to hunt around when I need a pick me up, I can use my kit as a jumping off point. (I printed my list off, but you can save it to your phone or wherever makes sense for you.)
Oftentimes, when I need a pick-me-up, my brain is too fried to think “Oh, I should watch or read such-and-such, that always makes me feel happier!” So, that’s why I’m making this list, so I know what tools I have in my laughter-as-medicine kit.
Before we dive into making a laughter-as-medicine kit…how exactly does laughter help?
I think we all know that laughter is a good thing, especially if you’re dealing with chronic illnesses, but did you know it can physically make a difference?
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My List of Little Joys – August 2019
Here is my latest list of little joys, part of my effort to focus on the things that I am thankful for and to remember all the little moments in life worth celebrating.
Keeping track of little joys has helped me to see that there is more to my reality than just the problems I’m facing. There are lots of reasons to smile, laugh, and enjoy life, even during rough times.
I’ve been recording some of the things that make me grateful as my own spin on gratitude journaling.
I’m glad I’m revisiting this style of post because *usually* summer offers me a little relief from fatigue and pain and symptoms—and unfortunately, that has definitely not been the case this summer. The weather has been so sporadic that I’ve not been able to benefit from consistenly warm days. We’ve had a day or two of balmy weather, then rain, and the rapid changes in weather sends my fibromyalgia, dysautonomia, and asthma into a tailspin.
It’s rough feeling worse when you were anticipating feeling better. I’m just realizing now how much I was banking on having some more time to write and go do things with friends this summer. Now summer is more than halfway gone, and I’m honestly feeling a bit robbed of my favorite season. (Can anyone relate?)
So I’m recording the highlights from the last couple months in a deliberate effort to remind myself that I *have* been able to do fun things this summer. Also, I want to try to focus more on the good.
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Reflections on Faith: Invited to the Throne Room
Do you ever just get struck by something about God that leaves you full of amazement and love for Him? I had one of those moments recently and wanted to share it.
I was listening to a podcast (this one, which I recommend) that is based on the book of Esther. After hearing the speaker read a few verses, I had to push pause because I was thinking about the throne room Esther was preparing to enter, and how much it contrasted to another throne room in the Bible.
Here’s a summary of the verses: Esther the queen is Jewish, but nobody, not even the king, knows it. She learns about a plot to kill her people, so she takes on what she sees as her God-given duty to save them. The problem? She has to go talk to the king, and he’s in the throne room. If you haven’t been invited there, the king could sentence you to death for even coming in—unless he extends his scepter to you as a sign that he’ll spare your life (Esther 4:10-12).
After listening to these verses, A LOT of thoughts were going through my mind.
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May 2019 Musings – Regrouping, Investigating, Boosting, Setting & Reviving
I’m excited to participate in A Chronic Voice’s link up for the first time! Link up parties are a fun way for bloggers to connect and write about similar themes, and this one is geared towards those of us in the chronic illness community. I’ve never had a chance to participate in one before, so I’ve been eager to give it a try. Let me know what you think of this style of post in the comments.
The themes for this month are Regrouping, Investigating, Boosting, Setting and Reviving.
It was a nice change to have guidelines “assigned” for writing a blog post. (I think Andy Warhol was onto something about having a “boss on retainer.” Having the framework for a post given to me felt a little more structured—like having a boss vs. winging it on my own.)
So, using A Chronic Voice’s five writing prompts for this month as a jumping off point, here’s what has been going on with me lately.
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My List of Little Joys – April 2019
Here is my latest list of little joys, part of my effort to focus on the things that I am thankful for and to remember all the little moments in life worth celebrating.
Knowing I’m going to be recording things that make me feel more joyful has helped me to keep up with my goal of gratitude journaling, and journaling in general, more often.
I honestly needed this practice in place over the last couple months. I’ve faced quite a few health setbacks recently, including a sinus infection, an injury, reacting badly to a new medicine I tried, and having to stop a treatment that was helping me, plus worsening insomnia due to tachycardia. Whew, it’s easy to get bogged down and overwhelmed when you see a lot of things going wrong, and it’s easy to dwell on them. Keeping track of little joys has helped me to see that there is more to my reality than just the problems I’m facing. There are lots of reasons to smile, laugh, and enjoy life, even during rough times.
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Reflections on Easter – A Collection of Quotes
As Good Friday and Easter weekend approach, I wanted to share some quotes about Jesus’ resurrection that have stood out to me lately.
I hope these beautiful reminders of the meaning of Easter encourage you today!
This post contains affiliate links.
“For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.”
—1 Peter 1:18-21 NIV -
Superpowers You Gain From Chronic Illness and Chronic Pain
Just for fun, I thought I’d write a post about all the “superpowers” we (unintentionally) gain when we develop chronic health conditions.
My massage therapist and I joke that I fight crime in my sleep. It’s a much more fun explanation for why my muscles freak out (the real reason: fibromyalgia). We joke that this is why I have brain fog too—I’m so deep undercover that *I* don’t even know that I’m a secret super hero, so I must be getting my memory wiped every morning. Sounds legit.
This got me thinking that, hey, those of us in the spoonie community really do have our own set of superpowers. And no radioactive spiders are even required! (Thankfully, because I hate spiders…and as for radioactive—been there, done that!)
I hope you enjoy these tongue-in-cheek examples of our superpowers. Because in all seriousness, each of you are fighters to get through each day with chronic illness and chronic pain.
