The Bittersweet Nature Of Chronic Illness

pippa's hand holding an orange paperback copy of bittersweet by susan cain

Who knows better than us that when you’re dealing with a long-term health condition, you have no choice but to try and find the joy amidst the struggle? Often, we’re led to believe that happiness is the absence of pain – however, when there’s no end in sight for your pain, you adapt. You learn to find joy in and amongst the struggle, rather than in place of it.

6 Outstanding Fiction Reads With Authentic Chronically Ill Characters

a stack of paperback books on a white table. top to bottom: please read this leaflet carefully by karen havelin, what are you going through by sigrid nunez, every little piece of my heart by non pratt, one by sarah crossan, get a life chloe brown by talia hibbert, and girl out of water by nat luurtsema

I think we can all agree that chronically ill characters are hard to come by in fiction. Authentic chronically ill characters are even rarer – I’m sure I won’t be the only one who’s initially felt a spark of joy upon discovering a character dealing with long-term illness, only to have their toes curl just […]

Using A Wheelchair Has Helped Me To Walk

pippa outdoors in york museum gardens, surrounded by trees and grass. pippa is sat in small black electric wheelchair, smiling with hands in lap, wearing pale pink denim jacket and jeans.

Oh goodness. Even writing the title of this post has made me nervous. Before we go any further, we’d better get a few very important caveats out of the way. First and foremost, walking is not the ultimate dream or end destination for every wheelchair user. Safely and sustainably increasing walking capabilities isn’t possible for […]