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HAWMC: I made it!

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Friday 1st May: You did it!

You’ve crossed the #HAWMC finish line. Recap the past month for us.  What did you enjoy, what didn’t you enjoy?  Favourite prompt?

Well, I have come to the end of the road of this year’s Health Activist Writing Month Challenge.

As in previous years, it has been a challenge.  After receiving the prompts, there was a moment of mild panic, wondering how on earth I was going to write meaningful and relatable blog posts that people will want to read, be able to relate to, as well as writing something original especially as some posts were from previous years.  Have I done this?  I am not sure, only the readers can answer that question!

I needn’t have worried, however, once I got started, the words just came out on paper, like it was an involuntary response.  Some days I could not even stop writing and desperately tried to shorten my posts!  I rediscovered a passion for writing, which illness had taken away recently due to the worsening of some of the symptoms I experience daily.

Writing during this challenge, however, has provided respite from the debilitating symptoms; an outlet for everything that I have experienced and feeling as a person living with chronic illness.  I hope that through writing, I can be an advocate for those also living with neurological conditions and highlight the impact that these can have on those living with them.
Some of the prompts were more challenging than others and often struggled with the appropriate way to tackle the question.  I felt a deep sense of accomplishment and pride when completing those challenging prompts, and was just one of the many achievements that happened during this year’s HAWMC.

Other milestones included publishing my 300th post, and an increase of traffic and likes on my blog, which is a real validation of the work that I have done.  But again, one of my favourite aspect of this annual writing challenge is reading the entries from the other participants in the writing challenge.  To learn about other conditions other than my own, and the impact that they have on the lives of the writers.  It is interesting to hear other perspectives on what it is like to live with a chronic illness, and furthermore, it is always a surprise on the similarities in our lives with chronic illnesses despite being diagnosed with very different conditions.
The only disappointment of the challenge was not being able to complete one of the posts.

I was experiencing a very bad day and was therefore unable to write anything.

Instead, I shared the post that I had written the previous year, but at the time I felt like I had failed in the challenge.  But the support I had from fellow participants and readers of my blog, made me see that I had not failed and needed the day to recuperate and reset my body.  It made me see the importance of self-care and the need of rest when we are not feeling our best.  To put ourselves before other commitments.

I would not say there were any prompts that I didn’t like; I really enjoyed them all, particularly writing about the positive impact that my dog Honey has had on my life.  Which of this month’s posts have you had enjoyed reading?

As ever I would really love your comments and thoughts on this year’s HAWMC!

Get in touch through the comment section below or through my Twitter or Facebook pages (links in the header).

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The end is here….

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Welcome to the Health Activist Writer’s Month Challenge brought together by WEGO Health – a social network for all health activists.  Again, I am participating in the annual Writer’s Month Challenge in which I will be writing about my health activism and health condition based upon prompts given.

Today’s final prompt reads as follows:

You did it!…You’ve crossed the #HAWMC finish line.  Recap the past month for us.  What did you enjoy, what didn’t you enjoy?  Favourite prompt?

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Well, I have made it!!  I have managed to write ALL 30 posts in 30 days!  And what a journey it has been – one full of ups and downs.  Celebration of triumphs over certain neurological symptoms in the post ‘I went and I conquered!‘ and reflecting on the tough times as a result of chronic illness in posts such as ‘Dear Rhiann (at age 16)‘ and ‘Escaping the monotony and boredom of chronic illness…‘.  Some posts were deeply personal and regarding my own life and experience with chronic such as the letter to my younger self, ‘Reflection of a life with illness…‘ and ‘Lesson Learned! Don’t walk down the stairs with trembling legs…‘ whilst other posts explored what is it like to live with a chronic illness in general in posts such as ‘Clichés often heard when dealing with chronic illness…‘, ‘The representation of chronic illness on TV…‘ and ‘Rules for dating a Spoonie…‘.

Although there were a lot of difficult aspects of completing such a monumental task such as writing everyday for 30 days, it has been a challenge that I most enjoyed.  The challenge allowed me the opportunity to focus on something other than on my symptoms and feeling unwell; it gave me focus and also gave me a purpose.  Another aspect of  the challenge that I also enjoyed was the opportunity to connect with other bloggers and learn more about their lives and experiences with chronic illness.  Although many of the blogs that I read or have read during the course of this writing challenge are about all different types of chronic conditions, it is surprising therefore reading others’ experiences and thoughts regarding living with chronic illness and seeing my own reflected in their words.  It shows that we don’t have to find other people with the same diagnosis to find support and a connection with other patients.  I have particularly enjoyed reading the wonderful and eloquent writing of Jessica Gimeno on her lovely and inspiring blog ‘Fashionably Ill: The Sick Woman’s Stylist‘.  I have also had the pleasure to meet a new blogger named Kerry Wong who has a wonderfully positive and inspiring blog named ‘Float Like a Buttahfly‘ and finally I have discovered a very informative and interesting blog about living with an Autistic Spectrum Disorder at ‘What’s the ASDeal?‘

I didn’t dislike any part of the challenge, however there were aspects of the month that were incredibly difficult, such as dealing with severe symptoms whilst needing to write posts.  Not easy when living with fatigue and you are constantly tired.  To help this, I planned the posts ahead of time, which came as a real help especially as some days I was unable to get out of bed due to the severe weakness in my legs and as the posts for those days were already written I was just able to proofread them and then hit the publish button from the comfort from my bed.  In addition, some of the posts were also similar or even exactly the same as prompts from previous years of the Health Activist Writer’s Month Challenge.  An example of  such a prompt is the ‘5 Challenges and 5 Small Victories‘ and the reasons for why we write.  It was therefore difficult to find new ways of answering these particular prompts without repeating what I have written before.

I have to admit that I am not able to choose a favourite post as I enjoyed writing them all.  The one post that did get the most traffic though was ‘Clichés often heard when dealing with chronic illness‘ so perhaps that was the readers favourite post.  I did particularly enjoy the prompt that asked us to write an acceptance speech – I really liked writing the post as it allowed me to thank everyone who has supported me and helped me during my journey from diagnosis of the neurological condition to where I am now.  I even showed this post to my Mum whom I mentioned in the acceptance speech, and she even teared up a little so it must have been well written and a wonderful post.  Which post from the last 30 days were your favourite?  I would love to hear your thoughts on the whole challenge!  Please feel free to add any comments, messages or suggestions below…

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HAWMC 2013 Day 30: Recap!

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Welcome to the Health Activist Writer’s Month Challenge brought together by WEGO Health – a social network for all health activists.  Again, I am participating in the annual Writer’s Month Challenge in which I will be writing about my health activism and health condition based upon prompts given.

Today’s prompt reads as follows:

You made it!  30 posts in 30 days!  Today, write a recap of your experience.  What was your favourite prompt?  Least favourite?  What have you learned? 

Well, I did it!!  For the second consecutive year I have managed to complete all 30 days with no need to use the ‘free-pass’ cards!!  It feels like a huge accomplishment especially as I have experienced several bad days.  Preparation seemed to be the key this year, especially as I am busy with other activities such as the Monday and Wednesdays groups that I am involved with and the day out once a week with my Personal Assistant means that I am not in the house all of the time, so I had to write many of the prompts before the day that it was published.

Just like last year, I immensely enjoyed the month-long writing challenge – I loved the challenge of all the prompts.  The prompts are not only a lot of fun to write but I also feel that the prompts enable us to look and write about our particular health conditions differently than we would normally.  For example, some of the prompts required me to write about topics that I might never would normally.  For example, the topic of burnout was selected to be discussed from one of the prompts, and if it wasn’t for the HAWMC I might never have written about the topic.  One of the prompts that I found particularly challenging was the Acrostic Poem from Day 13 (Acrostic Poem of my Health Condition) – it wasn’t necessarily the subject matter that was challenging as the whole blog is about living with my health condition, but the form itself.  I haven’t written a poem in many years so it was quite a challenge being asked to write one – just glad that I prepared in plenty of time and was able to write a decent attempt!

The prompts like always were a mixture of being, fun, challenging as well as being thought-provoking.  One prompt I really enjoyed, but initially found very challenging was the post regarding Adversity (“The flower that blooms in adversity…”).  I initially found it very difficult to write especially regarding when I bloom best.  However, although I found it challenging, I thought in the end it was one of my favourite and best written post!  I also loved the prompt which asked us to ‘spread the love’ and thank some of our favourite health activists; this was such a great opportunity for me to thank those who have supported me and helped me through some tough times with illness (Sharing the Love!  I would like to thank…).

I would also thankful for the Wordless Wednesday posts, as it gave a break from writing long posts and was fun coming up with creative photographs and drawings to dictate something without using words!  Would love to make this a regular feature but would need some ideas!  If anyone has links or ideas to do this please comment below and share!

Least favourites?  Perhaps some of the prompts that I had written about during previous writing challenges such as the post regarding caregiving (Carers, How to treat those you care for), and discussing favourite social networks (Why I Love to Tweet) to name but two.

Anyhow, regardless of the good and the bad through the experience of this writing challenge it was a challenge that I thoroughly enjoyed and look forward to taking part next year!   Thank you WEGO Health!

What did you think of my posts for the HAWMC?  What were your favourite posts to read?  Any you didn’t enjoy reading?  Loved to hear your views so please feel free to leave any comments/suggestions!

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NHBPM Day 30: Recap

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Well the ‘National Health Blog Post Month’ is officially over.

I would like to thank WEGO Health for providing all of the wonderful prompts for the entire month.

I would also like to thank all my readers who commented on Facebook, Twitter or on the blog itself.

It has been a very tough month of writing, especially because at the same time I have also been busy with volunteering, as well as my group and going out with my Personal Assistant, so much of my writing has happened on the days in which I am free.  This has involved much organisation, preparation and hours at my computer typing away!

I would like to say that I am proud that I have managed to write for every single day for the month of November – not even needing to use any of the free passes that were given to us at the start of the month, even though at times I really did not feel like writing I wanted to continue and complete the entire 30 days so I would feel that I have achieved something.

This challenge has had a great mix of fun topics such as ‘Sneak Peek in my Bag‘; ‘Giving Thanks‘ and ‘Flag for my Community‘ through to the more emotive topics, for example ‘O Health! What do I think of thee? Let Me Count the Ways…‘ and the ‘Book Report! Tying it to My Life!‘, as well as the topics that relate to health and the health conditions in which us health activists live with and has given us a chance to educate people on how these conditions impact upon our life, such as the ‘The Ever Changing Goal Posts‘, ‘Being there for someone with a chronic illness‘ and the related post ‘How to care someone with my condition‘ and a post regarding why the chronically ill love the internet.

Along the way, there have also been many prompts that have sparked though-provoking debates, as well as reflecting on the issues that affect daily life with chromic illness, which has been effective in spreading awareness and making people more aware.  Some of these issues that were raised includes:

 

I would love to know your thoughts on the ‘National Health Blog Post Month’- what did you think of the prompts and subject areas that I have written about during the past 30 days?  What did you think the most enjoyable posts was?  And which posts did you not enjoy?  Have you any criticisms or suggestions on how any part of the NHBPM could be improved on for next year?

Please leave any comments or suggestions below!  And thank you so much for all your time reading and commenting on my posts!  I am going to take a nice long break now!!

Until next time….

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