Wow, Your Mom Really Is Crazy

It is estimated that 50 million Americans suffer from autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, fibromyalgia, Crohn’s, lupus, etc., (aarda.org, 2011). Fifty million is roughly equivalent to the combined populations of California and Texas. Nearly 12 million Americans have a thyroid disease including Hashimotos, Graves and cancer (Harvard, 2011). I have both a thyroid and an autoimmune disease. This is my journey from sanity to psychosis to now at comfortably crazy. We moved into an upper-middle class neighborhood, filled with stay-at-home moms, green lawns, mischievous children, and white-collar dads in their loosened ties. I was never really one to put on airs, but in this neighborhood, I tried to be more like the Jones’. Upgrading from an apartment, to a tiny starter home, to our new place was essential. We had to keep moving into bigger dwellings because my son’s toys were taking over; his stuffed animals alone could populate the jungles of Africa. As we continued to expand, our living space wasn’t the only thing getting bigger: my physical and mental problems were also growing. As with most who suffer from autoimmune diseases, one is usually sick an average of ten years with various ailments before finally receiving the correct diagnosis. I was no exception. I was turning into a Looney Tunes character but was keeping this behind closed doors of course, because in suburbia, everyone is perfect…right? My neighbors had no idea I wasn’t. It was like “sucking in my gut” so to speak to the outside world, then letting it all hang out to my husband and son. Lucky them.