Processing Your Chronic Illness and Redefining Your Identity

In this week’s solo episode of Calling in Sick, I dive into the reality of processing and shifting our identity due to a Chronic Illness, whether you have an official diagnosis or not. I talk about the struggles that come from comparing ourselves to others and how we define self-worth, especially relative to our life before getting sick. The discussion also sheds light on how often we feel misunderstood and feel like we have to “look sick” in a particular ways to get care. Most importantly though, I touch on how processing a chronic illness looks and feels a lot like the grief curve. As always, I offer anecdotes of my own journey with processing my new identity and share some tips and tricks that have helped me navigate these topics. My hopes are this episode has you nodding “me too!” and that you can walk away feeling comfort that you are not alone in this journey. Thanks for Calling in Sick with me again - xx, Alex Timestamps: Introduction 00:00:00 Welcome back to Calling in Sick 00:03:40 Alex’s health update 00:07:40 Alex’s mental health update 00:11:20 Alex’s recent wins 00:14:00 Alex’s Wellness Picks The Chronic Illness Identity Shift 00:17:50 Post-diagnosis prioritization 00:25:25 The challenges of the chronic illness identity shift 00:34:10 My tips for handling the identity shift 00:51:20 My NUMBER ONE TIP for handling the identity shift Outro 00:53:30 Thank you for listening! Stay connected and follow social: • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/callinginsickpod/ • TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@callinginsickpod • Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61558234607568 ---------------------------------------------------------------- Powered by: Just Media House -- https://www.justmediahouse.com/ Produced by: Alexandra Wildeson — https://www.instagram.com/alexandrawildeson/ #chronicillnesssupport #livingwithautoimmunedisease #callinginsick #healthandwellness #podcast #podcastclips #flareup #chronicillnessidentity Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices