In this article, I explain what an atheist is and is not, discuss the myth that atheists are “angry at God”, and share what I do believe in and what my godless worldview looks like.

There are as many unique experiences of disability as there are individuals living with them. In this article, I will offer insight into the particular challenges I face and the privileges I hold in an effort to demonstrate a few of those differences, as well as some common misconceptions about what it means to be disabled.

When people see me outdoors, I want them to know: disability does not mean inability. Just like some non-disabled people want to explore the outdoors, some disabled people want to explore the outdoors too!

I learned the hard way that sexism is still common in the medical world: the myth of “female hysteria” remains pervasive, women’s pain is often dismissed, and to some doctors, the only thing that matters is a woman’s fertility.

We need to learn to resist the urge to offer unsolicited and oversimplified medical advice for complex, incurable, chronic medical conditions.

In a world full of ableism, choose to be an Anna.

This body is strong. It is powerful, resilient and unstoppable. It is capable. It has gotten me through hell, and it is now getting me through the journey back.

I don’t have a body. I have an amorphous blob of pain floating somewhere beneath my head. It hurts so loud that my ears are ringing. An orchestra of nerve endings vibrating in excruciating symphony.

Never underestimate the power of sharing your story or your message. You never know who needs it, or the impact it could have on them.

I don’t want to be pitied and I don’t want to be an inspiration, but those seem to be the only two categories in which people with disabilities are placed.

Severe illness can be traumatic, both for the person experiencing it, and the person who is forced to watch their loved one suffer.

Here, I offer a summary of my 15 years with MALS, Endo, CIRS, and cPTSD. It has been, as Francis Weller calls it, a rough initiation.

This account is a love letter to the younger me and anybody else who needs to hear this: It won't always feel like this. It is possible to enjoy the outdoors with disabilities. And every life has value, no matter its challenges.