I am not invisible, but my illness is.

My goal is to demonstrate, by means of a series of self-portraits, the invisibility of my illness in contrast to my stark consciousness of it. I suffer from a chronic illness, Small Fibre Neuropathy. Although I appear healthy, my invisible illness has accompanying mental health issues, periods of neuropathic pain and can be difficult to live with. I have pushed the limits of my comfort zone by making a series of self-portraits, where my partial visibility reflects how my illness makes me feel. The transparency of my body expresses the tension between where I am and what my energy level allows me to do. Experiencing unpredictable good and bad days that are never quite the same. Exploring my creativity through photography has been a kind of self-help therapy that has boosted my mental health and allowed me to discover an inner strength in dealing with my illness in my daily life as I ponder what the future may bring. My intention is to eventually share my panel with fellow strugglers of invisible illnesses.

2025

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I am not invisible but my illness is

Living with more than one illness can be life changing and you need to learn to accept the limitations that it brings. As I continue to look healthy means that it is not obvious to others that am I sick. They only see what lies on the surface, an important part of me remains hidden. I have discovered a strength that I never thought I had, instead of focusing on my illnesses, I have switched my attention to my creative side. Using my photography to create images where I am not totally there, the part of me represents my illnesses are missing from the view.

I am not invisible, but my illness is (May 2025)

I am not invisible, but my illness is. My goal is to illustrate, by means of a series of self-portraits, the invisibility of my illness in contrast to my stark consciousness of it. I suffer from a chronic illness; Small Fibre Neuropathy (SFN), although I appear healthy it is an invisible illness which has accompanying mental health issues and intrusive tinnitus. SFN can be difficult to live with, the small nerves falsely report pain when there is none. Pushing the limits of my comfort zone by making a series of self-portraits, where my partial visibility reflects how my illness makes me feel. I have focused on the way I place myself in the frame. The transparency of my body expresses the tension between where I am and what my energy level allows me to do. This creative process has been a kind of self-help therapy that has boosted my mental health and allowed me to discover an inner strength. My intention with this panel is help others who may be suffering with this also.

Invisible part 2

My illness is not visible and not obvious to others, appearing to be healthy. I often wonder how others see me. Discovering a strength that I never thought I had, focusing on my creative side, by using my photography to create images where I am not totally there. When you look at me you don’t see the whole of me, my illness and how it makes me feel, is missing from your view. My intention is to share this, to make more people aware of ‘Invisible’ illnesses, I’m sure I’m not the only person experiencing this.

I am not invisible but my illness is (May 2024)

Using my photography skills to focus on what I can do instead of what I cannot do, expressing my creative side.. This has allowed me to discover a strength that I never thought I had, pushing the limits of my comfort zone by making a series of self-portraits using multiple exposures to create images, where my visibility is akin to the energy levels of my body. My illness will always be part of me, but it is invisible, using photographic techniques to make myself transparent, creating the metaphor that the less you see of me the more I am consumed by illness and thus you don’t see the whole of me, my illness and how it makes me feel, is missing from your view.

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