As far back as I can remember, I’ve always been a people pleaser. It’s good to say ‘yes’, it’s polite to say ‘yes’, it’s fun to say ‘yes’. That’s the weird mantra that I’ve always seemed to live by – and although saying ‘yes’ can lead to a more positive existence that opens up a lot of doors, it can also be extremely damaging.
Being diagnosed with an autoimmune disease is like having someone steal all your ‘yes’ power and ration you with a certain number a day. Whilst internally you might still want to be that ‘hell yeah’ individual, the motive gets caught in a tangled web of anxiety, exhaustion and defeatism.