Unseen

Everyone has things that affect them.  Some of them are physical, some of them emotional, some things are a little of both and all those things can feel like a lot of everything.  Most of the time, those "things" we are dealing with are invisible to the people around us.

When I had breast cancer, I usually looked just fine.  People would sound surprised when they said, "You look good."  It may have been more of a question than a compliment.  I think they expected me to look poorly.  In the early days of my diagnosis, I would be driving down the road or walking somewhere and I would think, "None of these people have any idea what is going on with me."  I had radiation and not chemotherapy which is great news.  However, when you have cancer and your hair doesn't fall out, people seem confused.

People's reactions are innocent.  They have no idea what is happening.  They don't understand and they are doing the best they can. Thankfully, most of these people haven't had to deal with very many terrible things.

The thing to remember is that most of the time people are hiding whatever they are dealing with it.  They are trying to deal with it.  They are trying to move on and continue living so they don't "look" like anything is wrong.  The compliment should be, "Wow, I know you must be dealing with a lot, but you look amazing!" Then they should proceed to ask and listen to what is going on.

Simply because it is unseen doesn't mean it isn't real.  No one can see what my MS does to me on a daily basis.  Most of the time, I try to ignore it.  I try to continue as if nothing has changed.  Once in a while, I feel it, but no on sees it.  It is very real and completely invisible.