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Have you ever seen a stranger in distress and wanted to help them, but weren’t sure if it was appropriate? When we see someone on crutches, we know we should make an effort to hold the door open for them, or let them go ahead of us in…

I had been thinking the camera on my phone is faulty.  It seems to have been mistakenly set to “red spotty chipmunk face” mode for the past year or so, and I just couldn’t seem to change the setting.  Every selfie I took produced the same result!  My…

In March, I wrote about the amazingly brave young man, Wyatt the Warrior. Wyatt was diagnosed with localized scleroderma two years ago, when he was 8. Wyatt, now 10, and his twin brother Weston, have had a busy six months attending medical appointments, as well as…

Five years ago, Christchurch, New Zealand, was woken with a huge earthquake rated 7.3 on the Richter scale, with the epicenter just three kilometers from our house. I recall sprinting up the hallway at about 3 a.m. to get to the kids while being thrown from side to…

I think the world would be a far better place if people could do two simple things: Ask for help when they’re in over their heads. Admit when they’re wrong and adjust their behavior accordingly. I’ve lived with scleroderma for more than 32 years and still struggle with swallowing my…

My rheumatologist refers to my fatigue as being “profound.” Most days I can’t think of a better word to describe it. Let me share a typical day with you. I’m sure chronically ill people who struggle with fatigue can identify  with some of these things. (First, a disclaimer: The following…

I think about skin a lot more than most white people. I know that’s a really weird statement, but it’s true. Because my skin looks so different, I am quite aware that my skin influences how people perceive me. Having been diagnosed with scleroderma at age 10, I’ve grown accustomed to people…

“If you didn’t have scleroderma then you’d be a normal Mum, aye?” Our youngest was making a comment about how he loves going for bike rides with his Dad, and wished I could come, too. In the same conversation, he talked about missing me at the latest school sports afternoon,…

Having lived with scleroderma since I was 10 years old, I’ve grown accustomed to being asked intrusive questions about my appearance by random strangers. I’ve developed a pretty thick skin (pun intended) over the years, but there are still four seemingly innocuous words that continue to hurl me into a…

A few weeks ago, I went to my local hospital for a skin biopsy on the red lump that had developed on my forehead over the course of the last three years. To have lived with a diffuse scleroderma diagnosis for 19 years, and to have not had to have a…