The frustrations of being ill, but there are benefits...

Don’t you find that the people with the least often give the most?

Those who have hardly any money will hand over their last penny to help someone else.

Those with the least energy will push themselves to the very edge to support others.

And those who are the poorliest, who barely have reserves of their own, are often the ones trying to make a difference in the world.

Picture of Leanne, lying sideways on her bed with a pained and p**sed off expression on her face. She is wearing a pink T-shirt and her head is resting on a grey pillow.

It’s a pattern I notice again and again and it’s one I live myself.

My long-term health conditions are, without a doubt, my biggest frustration. They drain my energy, leave me feeling ill far too often, and crash me when something tips me over the edge. They make me feel scared about not being able to look after myself. Annoyed that I can't always do everything I want to do and also I grieve for all the hopes and dreams I had for my life that now looks so different.

At the moment I’m also managing Lyme disease. The first round of treatment seemed to help, but as soon as it stopped, the symptoms came flooding back. I’ve got so much work I want to do, so many plans I’m desperate to keep moving forward, and yet my body feels like it’s holding me back and makes me just want to cry in frustration.

But the reality is, the very same things that frustrate me the most are also my biggest asset. They’re what drive me to make change happen. They’re what push me to create spaces that make other people’s lives a little easier, a little brighter, and hopefully a little better.

So yes, it’s hard. Really hard. And yes, I get angry at the unfairness of it all.

But I also know that without these experiences I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing now. That mix of struggle and purpose is messy, but it’s real.

That’s exactly why Mobilates exists. To make movement accessible, inclusive and possible for people living with long-term health conditions, no matter how little energy or strength they feel they have on any given day.

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Mobilates CIC provides online and in-person inclusive exercises classes for people in the UK. Classes centre around supporting people with mobility issues, chronic pain, disabilities and long-term health conditions.

www.mobilates.com