#spooniebookclub Archives

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 is as follows:

Write about your favourite social network. Do you love Twitter? Facebook? Pinterest? Why?

I can be found on most social networks – Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest and Instagram! Facebook used to be my first choice of social networks as, it was the one all my friends used; it was convenient and had a lot of features that I could integrate with online socialising such as the messenger IM, games and so on. However, since starting the blog and the health activism, Twitter has now become my favourite social network to use.

Twitter has become my favourite social network for several reasons:

It only allows 140 characters per tweet and therefore is quick to get your message out there. It gets straight to the point, and can easily receive and view content quickly
You can be updated with current and breaking news which can come in very handy. You can follow organisations, charities, or even experts on your specific interest, and able to get up to date on all the latest research, studies and advice relating to your health condition for example
I love the ‘favourites’ feature – with so many blogs and articles that people tweet which I want to read but often don’t have the time, I can ‘favourite’ them; and save those links which I can read later when I have the time
Twitter allows you to send your message; your story where potentially millions of people will hear it
Twitter is also great for promoting your blog and new posts which have just been published and to get more traffic to the blog. According to my site statistics the majority of people find my blog through Twitter
It is a great platform for networking with other ‘spoonies’ and make new and lasting friendships – I have been blessed to have met so many wonderful people, who I now regard as great friends. Twitter allows us all to stay connected and to stay up-to-date with what is going on with each other. For example, if we read that someone is having a bad day then we can send messages of support and comfort. Twitter can basically used to form a small community of like-minded people, or people with shared experiences or in out cases illnesses!
Twitter is also a great platform to express opinions on a wide variety of local and global issues; and for bloggers and health activists especially it allows us to express opinions on the issues that matter most to us, and what is relevant to our health conditions
Twitter can also be a great tool for researching and finding new information by searching using specific hashtags. This may be useful for patients wanting to find information on new treatments or therapies that have been recommended by their medical team and determine how effective or what other patients thought of the treatment/therapy
The service TweetChat allows users to get involved and communicate live with organisations and chat with like-minded people. I love getting involved with the WEGO Health Chats via Twitter every week and discussing various topics relating to the chronic illness community
There are plenty of Twitter users that provides us all with a constant flow of positive quotes and messages in order to remind us to direct our thoughts in a positive way and become better than we are. You can log in to Twitter on a bad day and within minutes be lifted by positive words
Twitter can be used on computers, phones and tablets via the website or an application that can be downloaded – so you are able to get your message out anytime, anywhere!

Furthermore, if it was not for Twitter, I would never have met some wonderful people and help form the ‘Spoonie Book Club’ – a book club for those of us battling with chronic illness. A fantastic opportunity to talk with friends on topics that matter most to us, but more than that, also allows us to forget about our illnesses and conditions for an hour and just have fun discussing a great book and have some fun. Thanks to the other ladies that helped form the book group – Aisha, Anya and Megan!

If you would like to join and discuss some great books, you can connect with us by using the hashtag #spooniebookclub – the details of the book for this month can be found here

What is your favourite social network? And why? As ever would love to hear your thoughts!

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I am very excited for the first #spooniebookclub which is to be held tomorrow night at 8 P.M. (GMT) over on Twitter. The first book that was chosen was one which we will all would relate to – a book which examines what it is like to live with a chronic illness – and as we were all under the age of 30 – this book seemed to be the perfect fit for us all.

Interestingly, after a discussion with a fellow book group member; we both felt that the writing style of the author felt rushed and forced as if she was merely writing down her thoughts as they came to her. However, what if we were to look at it differently – as patients, we often have to wait a long time for answers; to get a diagnosis, wait for appointments. So, isn’t it refreshing for a book about chronic illness to get straight to the point; to be concise and compact. Each chapter is short, making it very easy to read little chunks when the reader feels up to it. Fantastic for those like me who tire very easily but still like to read before going to bed.

The book I found was very relatable and encompasses the chronic illness experience beautifully – the author cleverly also uses several other patients and their personal experiences of living with chronic illness; each with a variety of different conditions. In my opinion, this was a very smart move, as the range of conditions which can be considered as ‘chronic’ is large, and by including a variety of different conditions, the books feel even more relatable – if you are not able to relate to one person for a reason, then there will be another person included that you may relate your experience to.

The book encompasses everything that a person living with a chronic illness in their twenties and thirties are likely to experience in their life – leaving college or university and starting the path to their chosen career; making and maintaining friendships; starting romantic relationships and sustaining them, as well as the experience of chronic illness – hospitalisations, the patient experience both in hospital and in the ‘real world’. Much of the book, I found reflected on life in the hospital – and as a someone with a chronic illness that does not require frequent hospitalisations, I felt that it somehow didn’t apply to my experience of illness. However, the author does describe how ‘one of the only predictable things about chronic illness is its unpredictability‘; which I feel captures my experience of chronic illness beautifully – I never know how I am going to feel hour by hour, or day by day; and furthermore find planning activities and social gatherings very difficult as I never know if I will be able to attend, and if I do, often need to cancel such plans as I feel to unwell to go anywhere.

The only problem that I found with the book, is the obvious differences between the healthcare system between the UK and US. Some of the book talks about the major financial implications that chronic illness causes; something which thankfully, we living in the United Kingdom have to worry about. However, in contrast to this, the author also describes the relationships and contact with her medical team – often with patients being able to email or have easier contact when needed – which unfortunately does not encapsulate the experience with doctors or nurses here in the UK – instead my experiences have been one of long waiting times to see a medical practitioner, and having the hardest time to speak to a doctor even on the phone when things have become bad.

Overall, the book is very well written, and with the concise and compact chapters, makes it very easy to read in small chunks. Reading it, I found some of my own experiences being fed back to me, as if ‘finally, someone understands exactly what I go through’. The book was very easy to read, and managed to read the entire book in only a couple of days and really delves into the experiences of chronic illness that matter most in your twenties and thirties.

Has anyone else read the book? What were your thoughts of the book? You can share them here or on the ‘Spoonie Book Club’ Page which you can access on the top of the page. Or you can even join us on Twitter at 8 P.M. (GMT) to discuss the book using the hashtag #spooniebookclub.

#spooniebookclub

#spooniebookclub Review: ‘Life Disrupted: Getting Real About Chronic Illness in Your Twenties and Thirties’ by Laurie Edwards

Rhiann's bookshelf: read