The Invisible Kingdom: Reimagining Chronic Illness
- Downloads：2192
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-03-15 06:21:43
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Meghan O'Rourke
- ISBN：B098VXLHMT
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
Reviews
Susan
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Wow！ Mesmerizing。 Ms。 O'Rourke's journey through the American Health care system maze was at once horrifying and very familiar。 As one that suffered through a mysterious illness the entirety of 2021， it gave me chills - I was never diagnosed with anything and still suffer from bouts of debilitating fatigue and unnamed stomach ailments。 I particularly liked her description of Doctors who would get annoyed when she brought her blood work to appointments。 I am rooting for her and the diagnosis of L Wow！ Mesmerizing。 Ms。 O'Rourke's journey through the American Health care system maze was at once horrifying and very familiar。 As one that suffered through a mysterious illness the entirety of 2021， it gave me chills - I was never diagnosed with anything and still suffer from bouts of debilitating fatigue and unnamed stomach ailments。 I particularly liked her description of Doctors who would get annoyed when she brought her blood work to appointments。 I am rooting for her and the diagnosis of Lyme's she finally received - what took them so long！ I urge you to read this book to get a better understanding of our broken system。 。。。more
Kari
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This book has been so relatable to me and so refreshing to feel understood。 It explains so much of what isn’t understood and what breakthroughs have been discovered when it comes to Autoimmune and Chronic Illness。 It is the most relevant book I’ve read to date as a person that suffers from both。
Cindy Ambrosius
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A wonderful book for anyone who suffers from a chronic illness， is undiagnosed with an chronic illness， and definitely for all doctors/pcp's。 Because she lives it， she gets it。 A wonderful book for anyone who suffers from a chronic illness， is undiagnosed with an chronic illness， and definitely for all doctors/pcp's。 Because she lives it， she gets it。 。。。more
Ann
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The title of this book should be “The Privileged Journey through Chronic Illness。” Not everybody has the connections and resources to travel to Great Britain for a fecal transfer or jet off to the Washington coast to rest。I do not doubt that her experiences have lead to a lot of pain and suffering， yet the account veers to a lot of complaining about how people do not get it。 I am sure that people feel like it at their moments。 Yet she stays employed in jobs that others would dream of。Maybe a lit The title of this book should be “The Privileged Journey through Chronic Illness。” Not everybody has the connections and resources to travel to Great Britain for a fecal transfer or jet off to the Washington coast to rest。I do not doubt that her experiences have lead to a lot of pain and suffering， yet the account veers to a lot of complaining about how people do not get it。 I am sure that people feel like it at their moments。 Yet she stays employed in jobs that others would dream of。Maybe a little more time would have benefitted this book。 。。。more
BookStarRaven
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The Invisible Kingdom by Meghan O’Roarke is the record of her journey through the strange land that is suffering from an auto-immune disease。 She started having symptoms early in her twenty’s like fatigue， hives， dizziness， and brain fog。 As is the case with many auto-immune sufferers she thought it was her diet or not getting enough sleep。 But as her symptoms progressed it became hard to do even routine things。 Having symptoms that no one can explain， least of all the doctors， is terrifying。 It The Invisible Kingdom by Meghan O’Roarke is the record of her journey through the strange land that is suffering from an auto-immune disease。 She started having symptoms early in her twenty’s like fatigue， hives， dizziness， and brain fog。 As is the case with many auto-immune sufferers she thought it was her diet or not getting enough sleep。 But as her symptoms progressed it became hard to do even routine things。 Having symptoms that no one can explain， least of all the doctors， is terrifying。 It feels l like you are in a never-ending tunnel often asking yourself “is this my life？”， “Can I live like this forever？” O’Roarke says， “Another difficulty in diagnosing autoimmune diseases is that they often present as a systemic illness， with symptoms occurring in different parts of the body， and yet our health care system is very siloed。 Patients often end up consulting different specialists for different symptoms， with no one taking a big-picture look at the patient’s illness， unless a primary care doctor has the time to puzzle it out。” In sum， you have to go to different doctors to address all your different symptoms when the problem requires a holistic solution。I felt like O’Roarke’s story is one me and many other can relate to - the feeling that something is wrong only to go to the doctor and have them tell you you’re fine。 She says， “The pattern is this: A patient goes to the doctor to explain that something seems very wrong。 When tests turn nothing up， the patient is told she is fine， and emerges without answers， questing everything she knew about her body and perceptions。” This is something that needs to be talked about more often。 This book was repetitive。 Many of the same concepts came up over and over and her story had many ups and downs。 O’Roarke could have cut out substantial portions， been more succinct， and said the same thing。 I would recommend this book to anyone who has struggled with similar issues as Meghan o’rourke。 I appreciate that this issue is finally getting recognition and am thankful her book is on the NYT Bestseller list。 The more light we shine on this the more change can happen。 。。。more
Dot
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One of the most beautifully written books， the most eloquent， on the grief， the hope， the limbo of life with chronic illness。
Darcia Helle
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We all want to feel seen， especially when we’re suffering。With The Invisible Kingdom， Meghan O'Rourke takes us through the quagmire of life with an invisible illness， sharing the emotional turmoil of not knowing what’s wrong， while navigating a medical system that sets you up for failure。This is not a guide to healing。 O’Rourke acknowledges what most of us living with some form of invisible illness already know; every case is different and every person responds differently。By sharing her persona We all want to feel seen， especially when we’re suffering。With The Invisible Kingdom， Meghan O'Rourke takes us through the quagmire of life with an invisible illness， sharing the emotional turmoil of not knowing what’s wrong， while navigating a medical system that sets you up for failure。This is not a guide to healing。 O’Rourke acknowledges what most of us living with some form of invisible illness already know; every case is different and every person responds differently。By sharing her personal journey， O’Rourke shines a light in the darkness， allowing those of us suffering to see we’re not alone， and demanding the rest of the world see us as we are—sick， not crazy。O’Rourke also delves into biology and science， exploring the immune system and the many ways in which it can quietly go haywire。This book hit me hard because I’ve been living it since childhood。 As the decades pass， our numbers grow， and together we’re finally making too much noise to be ignored。 Yet the stigma remains， and science is woefully behind。If you’re living this story or you know someone who is， this book provides insight into a life disrupted and derailed。*I received a free copy from Riverhead Books。* 。。。more
Beth
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I read this because I loved her book The Long Goodbye and because my mom has rheumatoid arthritis。 I imagine this will be very validating to people living with chronic illness， and it helped me understand what my mom has been through。 I wouldn't say I enjoyed reading it， but it's a valuable contribution to the literature。 I read this because I loved her book The Long Goodbye and because my mom has rheumatoid arthritis。 I imagine this will be very validating to people living with chronic illness， and it helped me understand what my mom has been through。 I wouldn't say I enjoyed reading it， but it's a valuable contribution to the literature。 。。。more
Diana Green
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It is intense reading a memoir written by someone who has been on such a similar journey to my own。 The parallels in our experiences with chronic illness are almost eerie， but I've learned there are many， many people who are suffering from these types of hard to diagnose （often auto-immune related） conditions。 It is becoming an all too common story， including the difficulty in getting appropriate medical recognition and care。Although the author shares her personal experiences， she also did a lot It is intense reading a memoir written by someone who has been on such a similar journey to my own。 The parallels in our experiences with chronic illness are almost eerie， but I've learned there are many， many people who are suffering from these types of hard to diagnose （often auto-immune related） conditions。 It is becoming an all too common story， including the difficulty in getting appropriate medical recognition and care。Although the author shares her personal experiences， she also did a lot of research into the larger epidemic of chronic illness and even the history/progress of medical attitudes/practices in general。 Some of this extra information was interesting and useful， but there was SO much it， I found it became overwhelming。 I started skimming sections that didn't relate as closely to my own health issues。 I also wearied of the repetition in her descriptions of the ups and downs of her illness。 That's the nature of chronic illness。。。believe me， I know， firsthand。 But in this book， I felt there needed to be more editing out of long sections that repeat things already expressed multiple times。 There is a place for summary and streamlining， and this book could have benefited from losing about a third of its length。 That said， I want to acknowledge the courage and stamina it must have taken the author to relate in such a detailed and honest manner the experiences of her illness。 There are important insights to be gained from this book， and there were many passages that made me stop and reread， just to take in the full power of what the author was conveying。 。。。more
Rosa
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I am enormously grateful to Meghan O’Rourke for writing this book。 Her account illustrates the tremendous labor it takes to be mysteriously chronically ill， to keep looking for answers， and to not blame yourself for the systemic structures that leave so many of us - especially women - underdiagnosed， struggling， and unseen。If you have also been mired in the worlds of difficult to diagnose chronic illnesses， I recommend it。 If you have friends or loved ones who have been through it or who have di I am enormously grateful to Meghan O’Rourke for writing this book。 Her account illustrates the tremendous labor it takes to be mysteriously chronically ill， to keep looking for answers， and to not blame yourself for the systemic structures that leave so many of us - especially women - underdiagnosed， struggling， and unseen。If you have also been mired in the worlds of difficult to diagnose chronic illnesses， I recommend it。 If you have friends or loved ones who have been through it or who have disappeared from your life while navigating unclear chronic illness， I recommend it。 If it feels totally outside you or your network， I recommend it。 Especially with the rise of long covid， we need to build greater understanding and provide more support to this “Invisible Kingdom。” 。。。more
Ebookwormy1
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The excerpt landed the book on my #toreads。 https://lithub。com/meghan-orourke-on-。。。 The excerpt landed the book on my #toreads。 https://lithub。com/meghan-orourke-on-。。。 。。。more
Tomas Gimenez
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DissapointedA point here， a point there and a lot of bull in between。 After a few chapters it gets boring
Kirsten
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