I’ve written extensively about how fibromyalgia has isolated me from others but I’ve never really written about how my allergies do that. Growing up, my allergies were pretty awful but my mother would take me to the allergist only intermittently and often only so she could get prescriptions for my allergy medications that she would… Continue reading Sorry, I’m allergic, REALLY, REALLY, no, REALLY allergic
30 Things About My Invisible Illness You May Not Know 1. The illness I live with is: FIBROMYALGIA. 2. I was diagnosed with it in the year: 2006. 3. But I had symptoms since: 2003-2004. I suspect that I had fibromyalgia as early as 2003-2004 when I had to change careers because working as an… Continue reading 30 Things About My Invisible Illness You May Not Know
Okay, so I’m Dominican but I think my husband is a militant Dominican. What do I mean? I think he’s about force fed everyone in the family some yucca and plantains this Pesach. And no, I didn’t cook any of it. He cooked the stuff himself. It’s all part of his make-sure-wife-doesn’t-starve-without-rice-and-beans plan. Now, if… Continue reading Militant Dominican
I just got back from getting the medical excuse form for jury duty. The problem is now getting my doctor to fill it out properly. This falls on my general physician. The only doctor I barely trust. When I moved to Riverdale, I stopped visiting my dazzlingly gorgeous rheumatologist in Gramercy Park. After many, many… Continue reading What’s up, Doc?
It’s not every day that you open the NY Times and find news about Dominicans so, of course, when I saw a link to “For Privacy’s Sake, Taking Risks to End Pregnancy”, I scrambled to open it. What I read when I opened the link and skimmed the article was really troubling. It was sad… Continue reading Dominican Women in Trouble
No more milkshakes for me! A teacher I had for a nutrition class struggled with different health problems. She likened herself to the canary sent down to the mines because she was especially sensitive to everything. Because fibromyalgia makes absolutely no sense and some health professionals posit that it could the body’s response, some sort… Continue reading Extremely Sensitive: Treating My Fibromyalgia
Bag from Butyoudontlooksick.com. Friend: Hey, question, are you always in pain? Jewminicana: Yes, very little time am I ever NOT in pain, maybe an hour here or there. Friend: So how do you function? Jewminicana: You ever get a papercut? Friend: Yea. Jewminicana: I have a HUGE, huge papercut! Friend: So how do you function… Continue reading It’s a pain in the…everywhere!
This piece was inspired by a previous blog. “So, are you pregnant?” a friend asked bouncing over to me enthusiastically. I rolled my eyes and exhaled sharply. “What? What did I say?” Motherhood is hard. And I don’t just mean raising the babies. I mean having them. I mean trying to have them. And yes,… Continue reading Don’t Ask Me About My Uterus (Part 2)
Newsworthy Item from Consumerist.com: Delta Makes Woman With Muscular Dystrophy Crawl Off Plane Traveling is difficult when you’re disabled and according to the article above, Delta made it much, much worst for one handicapped passenger. Though my travel experiences have been nowhere near as arduous, my first and only flight to Israel was so upsetting… Continue reading The not so friendly skies
I made a decision that was tough for me last week. And so, of course, G-d in G-d’s infinite wisdom decided to test me on it this week. I was on the phone when a friend when I brought up davening (praying) in a synagogue. Davening in a synagogue has been a tough issue for… Continue reading Disabled people should be neither seen or heard
Memoirs of a Jewminicana 