Chronic illness Pain Support

Featured Story in XKSandiego.com

Featured Story in XKSandiego.com

Rest Ministries

An invisible force struck Lisa Copen when she was 24. Diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, Copen went in search of support and found none.  In response, she started Rest Ministries, an organization for those with illnesses that don’t necessarily have visible physical effects.  An invisible illness can range from diabetes to mental illness.

Copen researched nonprofit organizations and in 1997 she incorporated Rest Ministries.  The ministry, which focuses on those isolated by illness, began with an online newsletter and uplifting emails, which led to devotional group meetings in different communities. The e-mails, group meetings and the Web site all help validate invisible illnesses and help the chronically ill turn to God and avoid anger. Rest Ministries is abound with resources for anyone who wants to learn about invisible illnesses. Copen is trying to create awareness and will have National Invisible Chronic Illness Awareness Week Sept. 10-16. The week will include a number of online events with doctors, counselors, authors and career specialists available in chat rooms on the Web site.

Copen has written eight books and publishes the HopeKeepers magazine and other information sources for the ill as well.  HopeKeepers includes medical advice and spiritual guidance. Copen is also working on a book for mothers. She believes that one in two people have a chronic illness and 96% of chronic illness is invisible.

For more information about Rest Ministries and National Invisible Chronic Illness Awareness Week, visit www.restministries.org. -J.S.

Thanks to Bloggers on Family with Illness and Migraines

Rest Ministries is being blessed with a lot of people writing about the ministry, our mission, our books and National Invisible Chronic Illnes Awarness Week. We want to send a special THANK YOU out to those who blog about our ministry, write a book review, etc. So here is our first THANKS to a blog cllaed "Danieldoo-A family living with MS and Type 1 diabetes." Be sure to drop by her site and read more about this family or add your 2-cents.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ <> Monday, August 20, 2007 What To Say.... There have been many discussions here about being able to hide your illness. We all know that diabetes without complications can be invisible to the common bystander. Many people choose to hide their pumps or take shots in the privacy of a bathroom stall. It is an individual choice and I respect that. I, myself, am torn about that decision really. I mean to say that while I believe the more people who know the more we can change and the safer everyone would be but I totally understand that there is still prejudice that goes on in workplaces and such against people with chronic illness. This seems absolutely rediculous considering that according to Rest Ministries nearly 1 in 2 people have a chronic illness (96% of illness is invisible). For me, I have been around chronic illness my entire life. I grew up in a household with Lupus and RA, watched loved ones deal with Crohn's disease, heart disease, and alcoholism. I married a man who would be diagnosed with MS and then have a son who would develop Type 1 diabetes. My father in law died of pancreatic cancer, my mother battled breast cancer and lost, my mother in law has Addisons, my sister in law has Graves, my step mother has had two heart attacks and is about to have surgery for an aneurism as well as blocked arteries that have cut off almost all circulation to her legs. There are many more I could list but you get the picture. I know more people with an illness than people without one. Most of them you would never know are ill by just looking at them. I have a passion for people living with chronic illness, can you tell? One thing I have noticed over the years is people have an inability to know what to say when they find out you have an illness. All people from family to strangers kind of lose any sense of verbal direction when they hear the words chronic illness. We all know a doctor or two who have shown the lack of something beneficial to say. Ok, let's just call it what it is, "Illness", "Sick", "Disease", "Condition", these are all words that make the best of them chew on a shoe or two. How is it that so many people have a chronic illness but yet there are still so many people who are uncomfortable with the whole concept? Well, now there is something to help with what to say or do when faced with a person living with chronic illness. This incredible woman by the name of Lisa Copen has published a book called "Beyond Casseroles: 505 Ways to Encourage a Chronically Ill Friend". This book is amazing! I found so many great ideas and wonderful ways of handling situations that I had not thought of before. Yes, I even found that some of the things I have said over the years was not what I should have said. You should definitely give this book a read, it would also be a great gift for those in your life who do not have a clue and always say the wrong thing. C'mon you know you have them in your life and rather than hit them up side their heads, like you want to do, give them a copy of this book. Your mom will be so proud that you played nice and showed love to your enemy. National Invisible Chronic Illness Awareness Week is September 10-16, 2007 To learn more about this incredible, much needed, event go to www.invisibleillness.com and check out all the wonderful things they have to offer. This is a worldwide effort to bring together people who live with invisible chronic illness and those who love them. posted by Vivian @ 7:39 AM    ====================================== SPECIAL THANKS TO... Somebody Heal Me - news & commentary on life with migraines & depression Migraines, other headache disorders and depression are most-assuredly invisible illnesses. National Invisible Chronic Illness Week, September 10-16, 2007, offers an opportunity to come together with others in your situation through a series of virtual chats.