I’m Ardra and I write Tripping on Air, a lippy blog about my life with multiple sclerosis (MS). People tell me it’s funny and I believe them because I’m an egomaniac. Lisa asked me to write a guest post about why I write with humour, about something so effing awful. Lisa is lazy or she […] Read more…
An edited and much less sarcastic version of this essay was published last year on xoJane. You can find it here: http://www.xojane.com/issues/chronic-illness-isnt-made-up Yesterday was Rare Disease Day so I spent a lot of time reading stories and watching videos by people who were diagnosed with rare diseases. Across the board, most people had something in common: […] Read more…
One of my blog readers messaged me earlier this week to tell me that my blog has helped her (you da best). She told me that she has a lot of trouble talking openly about her illness and how it affects her, and because I am so open about my own health it has given her a […] Read more…
Hey folks! I made a Buzzfeed list for those of us living with a chronic illness. You will especially enjoy it if you’re a huge fan of The Mindy Project or anything Mindy Kaling. Check it out by clicking on the image below! Kthnxbye! Read more…
If you’re reading this you probably have a friend with a chronic illness. You probably also know how to use the internet and sometimes find yourself searching for things to help your friend through said illness. That’s probably how you found this link. First of all, on behalf of people with chronic illnesses that aren’t […] Read more…
Earlier today I was sent an article from CBC about a young woman in Halifax who has received ridiculous notes on her car because she had the nerve to walk away from her vehicle which was parked in a accessible designated parking space. Even though Natasha Hope-Simpson has a valid accessible parking permit which is […] Read more…
Nothing says the holidays to me like music, movies and books. While everyone is caught up in getting ready to celebrate, these are the three ways that I take a much needed break and unwind from the holiday chaos. It’s important to rest, but resting doesn’t necessarily have to mean sleeping. Curling up with a […] Read more…
Reading is by far one of my favourite forms of therapy. There’s nothing quite like the stirring of emotion and relief when I open a book and find out that there is another person out there, somewhere, who knows what it feels like to be me. As someone with a chronic illness, I turn to […] Read more…
I have a chronic illness. I also happen to love travelling and have been doing so in abundance this past year. I have been on approximately thirty-five flights in the last year between business and leisure. In the beginning of my travel-spree I not only ignored the fact that I have a chronic illness, I […] Read more…
“I knew, of course I knew, that life is always more complicated than our narratives.” – John Burnside, A Lie About My Father Writing an illness is hard. Writing an illness for the humour section is even harder. I am someone who prides herself on being rather breezy about the whole living with a chronic […] Read more…