Being born in 1983 with complex congenital heart disease, I was part of a generation that saw remarkable advancements in medical care. However, even with these advancements, there were few of us who survived through childhood and into adulthood. This meant there wasn't an enormous amount of...

If you hear “Stop, collaborate, and listen,” you might think of Vanilla Ice. We're not here to bring back 90s rap (though that might be fun). Instead, let’s focus on something equally crucial: learning to stop, recalibrate, and listen to your mind and body.

Vanilla Ice might...

Living with a chronic illness means constantly balancing what you want to do with what your body can handle. Sometimes, it's easy to push ourselves too hard, thinking we can just power through. Sometimes, it’s hard to even know when you can push through and when you can’t. But our...

Living with a chronic illness often means needing extra attention, more help, and greater flexibility. It's a reality we face daily. However, there come moments when someone we love needs us to be their rock. These times are rare but incredibly important. How do we, as people managing chronic...

Sometimes, I get so caught up in managing my life that I forget to live it. Over the past few weeks, I was super focused on managing my symptoms, scaling up exercise, eating well, recognising what my mind and body were telling me, and finding ways to address it, all while doing lots of work....

For those of us living with chronic illness, self-care can be a double-edged sword. Take a massage, for example. What’s supposed to be a relaxing experience can often feel like just another medical procedure. If you’ve ever found yourself on a massage table, tense and unable to relax,...

If you have any kind of chronic illness or have had a massive health even in your life, you can probably relate to Catherine (Kate) Middleton, Princess of Wales. I've intentionally avoided the media buzz around her situation, but what I do know has been gnawing at me for months. Frankly, the way...

When I started high school, I went to a Catholic all-girls school. The school was dutifully briefed on my medical history, including the fact that I’d already had three open-heart surgeries and lived with congenital heart disease. They knew I was, in some ways, fragile and needed extra...

Living with a chronic illness can sometimes feel like a full-time job. Even when things are stable, there are routine check-ups, procedures, and the constant balancing act to maintain our health. Today, I’m sharing my experience with one such routine inconvenience: a precautionary...

Living with a chronic illness has its fair share of challenges, and exercise always seem to be at the top of my list of challenges. For me, managing complex congenital heart disease has meant undergoing five open heart surgeries. Through these experiences, I’ve had to learn how to...

Traveling for medical care can be a significant part of managing chronic illness. While the focus is often on treatment and recovery, the logistics of travel can add another layer of complexity to your healthcare journey. Luckily, each state and territory in Australia offers a Patient Assisted...

Living with a chronic illness can often feel like a lonely journey. The day-to-day challenges, the emotional rollercoaster, and the constant adjustments can leave you feeling isolated and misunderstood. But there is one sure fire way to cure the loneliness, and that’s to find your tribe.

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