Every day, I see and hear people with illness pretending to be healthy.
It takes a certain kind of skill to convince everyone around you that you feel great.
For example:
To excuse yourself from a table of friends, in a graceful manner, when all you want to do is literally RUN to the washroom, is no easy feat.
Trying to breathe calmly when you're just about ready to vomit - and not have it show on your face - is a talent!
Staying calm, cool, and collected when you are on the verge of tears is nearly impossible.
When you are trying to focus, but all you think about is when you should go to the emergency room - hiding this panic that goes on in your head several times a day sucks the energy right out of you; it can cause exhaustion just from worry.
Putting on a brave face when all you want to do is scream, controlling your tears until you reach a bathroom stall so that you can break down in private is unbearably difficult!
We find excuses all the time for why we can't attend events or why we have to leave early - just so that we don't seem like we are wanting sympathy or feeling sorry for ourselves.
Pretending to be healthy is one of the most challenging types of acting. We attempt to look and seem to feel a certain way - even though we don't have a CLUE about what it actually feels like to be healthy.
Isn't it a shame that chronic illness is the most prominent reason that we have acquired some advanced acting skills, but it is also the reason why most of us cannot pursue a career in acting...