Health vs chronic illness

Healthy People: I'm so tired from staying up late last night
Chronically Ill: I'm so tired from lying on the couch all day

Healthy people: I hate working, it would be amazing to stay home all day doing nothing
Chronically Ill: I'd give anything to be able to work.

Healthy people: I'm so excited about going out tonight!
Chronically ill: Okay, if I want to go to the party I have to cancel all the plans the day before and the day after. Do I have any doctors appointments? No, I'm okay. Is there anything I have to be at in the time frame? No, okay I might be able to go if I rest up. I wonder if there is an elevator or if I have to climb the stairs? Is the parking lot a long ways away from the building? Note: check website to make sure there is convenient parking. If the parking is close, I might be able to go as long as nothing else comes up and my body co-operates.

Healthy people: Why can't you get up off the couch, you're so lazy.
Chronically ill: Why can't you try to understand that my body doesn't work the way yours does? It's not for lack of wanting that keeps me here.

Healthy people: Why do you only think about yourself?
Chronically ill: I'm in so much much pain and I'm so exhausted it's all I can do to survive and yet it's not enough for you. I wish you knew what it felt like to fight this fight.

Healthy people: Why aren't you exercising more? If you exercised you wouldn't have health problems.
Chronically ill: Every time I exercise it puts me in bed for three days straight.

Healthy people: Anyone who takes regular pain killers is an addict.
Chronically ill: I have to take pain killers just to survive. I wouldn't be able to function at all without the occasional lowering of my pain. If you could take the burden of my pain for one minute it would knock you over with it's strength .

Healthy people: I don't even have a doctor only old people get sick!
Chronically ill: I have four different doctors for the four parts of my malfunctioning body and I have to see each one of them every three months. I spend my life juggling doctors appointments and dealing with indifferent doctors offices and ignorant pharmacists.

Healthy people: If you really wanted to feel better you would try harder.
Chronically ill: I've tried so many things and spent so much money and nothing works. There is no cure for my condition, I can only cope.