“You’re Making Up Symptoms,” They Laughed—Until the Specialist’s Report Came Back.

twenty-four. Twenty-four-year-olds don’t have joints ‘on fire.’ You’re just stressed.”

Stressed. Dramatic. Attention-seeking. Words that turned into a cage over time.

When I started keeping a symptom journal, my mother found it on the coffee table and laughed. “What is this?” she asked, flipping pages. “A script?”

“It’s so I can track patterns,” I said,continue reading …