8 Women in Pain Health Bloggers You Should Follow

8 Women in Pain Health Bloggers You Should Follow

Last year I started an awareness campaign to highlight women in pain health bloggers that you should follow. This is my 2021 edition. Read on to learn more about these incredible women and the work they are doing to assist and inspire chronic pain patients around the world!

Melissa Talwar of Support Fibromyalgia Network

I’d be hard-pressed to find readers that don’t know about Melissa’s health advocacy work. She’s a National Board Certified Functional Medicine Health Coach trained at the Functional Medicine Coaching Academy. She is also a Wahls Protocol Certified Professional, and ReCODE Coach (Bredesen Protocol).

Melissa was diagnosed with fibromyalgia at 14 years of age. She spent over 20 years slowing getting worse in a medical system that was unable to assist her. She was cyclically bed bound, with severe pain, brain fog, fatigue, and stomach issues.

Melissa is well known in the chronic illness community because of her fantastic networking skills, and she has her finger on the pulse of the fibromyalgia community. She has won many awards for her advocacy work.

Her non profit website, Support Fibromyalgia Network offers a variety of programs for patients, medical education, expansion of research, and advocacy education. She hosts videos featuring patient leaders throughout the fibromyalgia community. She’s also a terrific listener. (I find this quality rare these days!)

Conversations with Mel leave all her guests feeling empowered and inspired. There’s always something new on the horizon if you’re following Mel!

“We are taking patient empowered education and community outreach to the next level! Our Fibromyalgia patient services meet Fibromyalgia patients where they are at, are accessible, and are diverse for various population. Patient education is rooted in Functional Medicine principles, and we make them accessible to the entire Fibromyalgia community. Through our programs we will better understand what is working, what is underfunded, and which programs are missing completely.“

SupportFibromyalgia.com

Cynthia Covert from The Disabled Diva

Words cannot express how amazing Cynthia is! I love her posts and updates. She’s got a great sense of humor, and this lady knows her stuff. Cynthia blogs about life with Psoriatic Arthritis, Fibromyalgia, and Endometriosis. She offers great tips and advice for patients who are living with chronic pain, and while her posts are serious, she is also a lot of fun.

“She’s always trying new ways to improve her pain and life. Then shares her experience, good and bad, with you. Cynthia helps people acknowledge areas of their lives that could use a change and to find a way to do it. She’s a master at modifying her life to make it work for her and her family, then shares that know-how with the world.“

Cathy Chester, An Empowered Spirit

Cathy is an award-winning health blogger who has been writing about her journey with Multiple Sclerosis since 1986. In addition to being a wonderful human being who genuinely cares about her fellow patients and friends, her educational posts about life with MS and chronic illness are meant to uplift and empower her readers. Cathy’s main mission is to “empower, educate and inspire you to live a rich, full life despite living with a chronic illness.”

“No matter what adversity you face, life is still delicious.”

Friends, this is one special lady and I’m so glad I met her last year. If you’re looking for a blogger who knows health advocacy work inside out, while also being incredibly supportive, compassionate, and kind, then look no further. I love hearing from her and I can imagine we’d be good friends if we didn’t live half a world away from each other.

Carol Homer from InvisiblyMe

Carol, who goes by Caz, lives in the UK. She is an award winning blogger who also copes with a number of chronic illnesses, including: MECFS, fibromyalgia, chronic migraines, anxiety, Raynaud’s Disease, pernicious anaemia, bronchiectasis with lung inflammation and scarring, and she has a stoma bag due to having her large bowel removed. Caz writes about the various ways that she has adapted her life to live with chronic illness, while providing educational posts and information for other patients struggling with chronic pain and chronic illness.

Like so many of us, Caz has found “the online world to be such a blessing. It’s helped me educate myself around my health so I can advocate more effectively for myself. I’ve also found such a welcoming, compassionate community. When your social life is extinct, online friends are to be cherished. I’ve additionally found my blog gives me a sense of purpose, a way to give back a little and connect with others. It’s good to know you, I, we are not as alone as we may sometimes feel.“

Barby Ingle of iPain Foundation

iPain Foundation has always been on my radar, but I didn’t learn about Barby Ingle’s advocacy work herself until I attended the 2020 iPain Summit that was hosted after the 2020 WEGO Health Awards. Let me tell you, this woman is incredible. Not only is she President of International Pain Foundation (iPain), but she is also an Amazon best selling author and Reality TV Personality who shares her life story to help other patients in need.

She has received more than 20 accolades for her work in the chronic pain community and she devotes her time to being a chronic pain educator, patient advocate, and motivational speaker. She developed endometriosis in 1997 and in 2002, she was diagnosed with RSD. (Reflex sympathetic dystrophy)

Barby is also a prolific blogger on her personal site, so be sure to stop by and check it out!

“I know firsthand how hard it is to continue looking for relief, perfect answers, and then coming up against healthcare professionals who blow you off or do not believe what you are saying could actually be what you’re experiencing. As I search for a cure, I have become my own best advocate and work sharing the information so that others do not have the same life struggles that I have. Even after seeing over 100 healthcare professionals, having major surgeries I didn’t need, complications such as internal bleeding, medication interactions, kidney stones, tumors, severe constipation and so much more – I did not give up or give in! I was tested to my limits and realized they are past the boundaries I placed on myself. I had to become the Chief of Staff of my Own Medical Team. If I can do it, anyone can. We all just need support and HOPE!”

BarbyIngle.com

Shelley, Chronic Mom

Who doesn’t love a little Chronic Mom? Shelley lives in Texas and she has been blogging about her life with Lyme and Fibromyalgia since 2011. She decided to start blogging after spending years trying to find answers to her ongoing health problems.

If you’re looking for a honest and down-to-Earth blogger who tells it exactly like it is – no sugarcoating – then Chronic Mom is your woman! Be sure to check out her series on disabled women in history.

“The purpose of my blog is to let sick people know that they are not alone and that there are other people out there like them. I also hope to make people laugh along the way because laughter makes everything better.”

ChronicMom.com

Pain Reaction Blog

Pain Reaction focuses on a chronic pain lifestyle management while also offering practical advice and discussion about her other illnesses that include: Ulnar neuropathy, Atypical IBS, Migraine, Chronic headaches, TMJ disorder, Restless Legs Syndrome, PTSD, and Dermatillomania.

Her life with chronic pain started when she was tripped while playing basketball in gym class in Grade 7. She smashed her elbow into the corner of a concrete wall and the pain never stopped. Surgery helped improve her quality of life, but then she developed atypical IBS, and THEN she was hit by a car which created a whole new set of health problems she had to learn to cope with. With a strong background in forensic biotechnology, genetic research, pharmacy, and drug related health insurance, Pain Reaction offers facts and critical thinking with each post she publishes. “If I find benefit in something, I want you to benefit as well.”

“I ultimately hope that sharing my experiences with chronic pain helps someone else living with chronic pain. Helping someone without pain understand this invisible illness would be wonderful as well.”

PainReaction.com

Kathy, Upbeat Living

Kathy has been living with disability from chronic illnesses for more than a decade. She was a registered nurse until she had to quit her job due to illness. She suffers from asthma, chronic bronchitis, arthritis, GERD, osteoporosis, sleep apnea, fibromyalgia, CVID which is an immune deficiency, and anxiety/depression. She initially started her site to find purpose with her life, but like most chronic illness bloggers, she learned that sharing her story benefits others.

“My dream is to inspire, and encourage others with chronic health issues to dream new dreams, and be bold enough to pursue them. I haven’t mastered this life with chronic illness, but I would love to have you with me on the journey.”

UpbeatLiving.net

So that’s it for today, friends. Do you know any of these amazing bloggers on my list? Make sure you show them so love on social media and give them a shout-out! Don’t forget to Pin It!