Welcome to our Flowly Feature with Kate from katethealmostgreat.com.
Each Flowly Feature will highlight a hero on their health journey so that we can get inspired, pick up a tip or two, and remember that we are not alone 💙
Tell us a little bit about yourself:
I'm Kate Mitchell, a chronic illness blogger. I'm a millennial living in the Boston area, and I help other chronic illness patients live their best lives.
What has your personal health journey been like?
I've had chronic pain since 2001. I live with rheumatoid arthritis, fibromyalgia, POTS, endometriosis, Sjögren's syndrome, asthma, and chronic anemia. Most of those were triggered by my RA, which was undiagnosed for 9 years, and every time I've gone off of my RA treatment I've developed another illness or complication.
What would you tell the past version of yourself when you first began your health journey?
You are right about your body; listen to your instincts. Keep pushing for answers.
Here at Flowly, we are all about cultivating a flow state. What does a state of flow feel like or look like to you?
Doing all of the things that my body needs with as little stress as possible!
When do you feel the most "in flow" in your life?
Those rare days when I'm on top of my health, work is going well without being stressful, I can see my friends and family, and I'm eating healthy.
How do you balance taking care of your health on top of everything else in your life?
I put my health above everything. I set alarms so I don't forget to take medications. I take a lunch break away from my desk every day. I have tools to make work easier (a lap desk, compression gloves, etc.). I also save 90% of my blog work for the weekend, with just smaller maintenance tasks during the week.
What resources have helped you on your journey?
- The Pretty One by Keah Brown - This book hit so close to home and I recommend it to everyone. Keah writes honestly about her experiences.
- The Arthritis Foundation has provided me with so many resources that helped me start advocating. Doing advocacy work makes me feel like I have some semblance of control over my health, especially when I can help people similar to me.
- Cure electrolyte drink mix has changed my life! I need more electrolytes than people without POTS, and while I take sodium pills because that's the electrolyte I need the most, it isn't the only one. Drinking Cure tastes good and makes me feel better!
Where can we follow your journey?
My blog is katethealmostgreat.com
Social media is kmitchellauthor or katethealmostgreat! 📲
Know a hero you think we should feature? Send us a message at contact@flowly.world! 📩