The joints, head, back, etc.
Lately, I have been having trouble with back pain and have always struggled with sporadic headaches and migraines at times. As I have been taking this course I have been paying more attention to how I feel in my body or, in this case, how I hide or joke about how I feel.
Pages: 1 2
Unruly Bodies 
I feel where you are coming from. I struggle with a bad back and two bad knees. It’s not easy to get through every day and some nights simply require a heating pad. That is okay. You are doing what you need to do for you. You are the only one that has to experience your body and no one else can tell you how you feel. It is important, I think, to talk about these things, for a few reasons. One, normalize it. Two, just because someone else is in pain, or even more pain than you are, doesn’t make yours less valid. Three, you are human. You are going to experience aches and pains and that’s how you know you’re still alive and kicking (range of motion negotiable). Don’t put yourself down. Just focus on what you need to do for you and what will help you feel better.
I really appreciate you sharing this. As someone who also deals with chronic pain, and has a partner with fibromyalgia – I can really empathize with you. Body pain is not something that people really have a strong understanding of, especially in the context of educational and professional environments. Folks assume that unless they can see something with their eyes, it is not real/a valid concern. Chronic pain is often not just a source of physical limitation, but also a real physical disability. Like you said – there is so much judgement and a level of justification and explanation that people often expect, which adds a whole other layer of emotional labor and frustration. At the end of the day, you are right in that our pain is not for others to police or try to regulate.