Social media is going to be the death of me.
I've gotten into countless conversations over the past month where tone isn't clear because communication is happening via the internet, or where I'm talking with people who don't know me and read drama into simple factual sentences where there is none. This happens on message boards and facebook, via email and in chat rooms.
I've come to find that many people experience this - and moreover, many people who live with chronic illness experience this to the extreme.
A recent social media post elicited a response indicating that all I do is complain about my health, worry about things, and dwell on my needs and wants, totally lacking in gratitude for the wonderful things in my life. I was taken aback, as I try to see the blessings amidst the chaos whenever possible. Surprisingly, it's usually possible. The more I thought about it, the more clear it became how easily things can get lost in translation.
Tone and intent are difficult to hear on the internet. Knowing someone's background, thought patterns, and sense of humor when you're more acquaintances than friends is nearly impossible. Perhaps looking through the eyes of chronic illness and chronic pain is a lot different than looking through eyes of relative health. Maybe when I'm posting in an isn't-this-funny-way, humor is not conveyed and it's instead taken seriously. What frames my life on any given day is often my pain and/or energy levels, a decent bit of faith, and a very odd sense of humor. It seems social media needs a special translator for people living with chronic illness: the Chronic Ailment Translator (CAT).
Status Update: Thank God for kids who clean up from dinner, load the dishwasher, and put themselves to bed when Mama has a severe migraine...and also for a husband who stops and picks up helpful things on his way home from work.
Possible Perception: She's whining about having a migraine again.
Actual Translation: I am incredibly blessed to have responsible children and a kind husband who take care of me so well.
Chronic Ailment Translation: I just did in a few hours what it took me all of last Summer to accomplish. Amazing, isn't it? But perhaps doing that amount of stuff in that short of a time was too taxing on my chronically ill body, especially since I didn't sleep well last night, so I shall joke, as I always do, about needing a nap, especially considering the incredible improbability of nap-taking due to the enormous horde of children in my house for whom I'm responsible.
