Anyone else follow @kimcankickit? I am devastated by her most recent post. For those who don’t know her: she’s a majorly inspiring badass who has been fighting a rare form of cancer for the past 5+ years and has had numerous surgeries and been on countless forms of radiation and chemo since being diagnosed, all while continuing to participate in half-marathons, triathlons, mountain biking every day, raising her daughter, and always doing some sort of fundraiser for others with cancer. She’s just this total powerhouse of a woman. A few weeks ago, a scan of her lungs showed they were covered in what could be cancer, but her doctor thought it might just be pneumonia. However, the biopsy she had done earlier this week showed that it is indeed cancer that has rapidly spread all over her lungs. It’s so unjust that cancer can repeatedly strike such otherwise healthy people.

It’s especially frustrating seeing this in comparison to other wannabe “chronic illness bloggers” who post dozens of stories from their bedrooms where they stay for days on end because if they leave they’ll be “exposed to toxic mold.” One of them, @rollinwiththehomies (who likely bought followers to portray herself as a “chronic illness blogger,” because though her profile says she has 16,000 followers, she usually gets less than 100-ish likes per photo), is constantly talking about “living with chronic Lyme” and how it’s “truly worse than any form of cancer.” NOPE. There are people like Kim who are devastatingly ill in spite of desperately not wanting to be, and then there are these “chronic Lyme warriors” who desperately WANT to be sick, even when doctor after doctor tells them they are physically very healthy. (I realize that Lyme disease is real, but there is no scientific evidence that “chronic Lyme” and “toxic mold sickness” are real, nor are either considered to be legitimate illnesses by the CDC). Not to mention these “chronic illness warrior bloggers” usually claim to have a variety of other illnesses on top of chronic Lyme and toxic mold (like Epstein Barr, celiac disease, etc, etc, and WHY do they always have to add “wellness coach” to their Instagram bios as soon as they decide to start having/posting about “chronic Lyme?!”).

Maybe I’m screaming into the void here, but it’s very upsetting. The “spoonie community” makes me so angry with their wannabe illnesses while others like Kim and @whippycakes are fully fighting for their lives. It’s just not fair.

I’ll stop ranting now. hides under chair