The 5 Stages of a Chronic-Illness Diagnosis
It’s a process, not an event
You probably know somebody who always seems to be sick but can’t really explain why. Or maybe you’re the one who’s been labeled a problem patient. And if you’re anything like I was, you probably think diagnosis works the way we see on TV: Somebody with a mysterious illness heads to Princeton-Plainsboro Teaching Hospital or Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital, and an intrepid doctor figures out exactly what tests to run to solve the mystery. Alas, things do not usually work this way in the real world.
When my health began to decline rapidly in 2017, I didn’t know how diagnosis worked, either. I was still looking for that elusive intrepid doctor who would explain what was going on with my body. But when I couldn’t find them, I decided to start talking to other people with chronic illness about their diagnostic experiences and eventually turned those conversations into a podcast called No End in Sight. Sixty-plus interviews later, I’ve realized that misconceptions about the diagnostic process leave many patients unsupported and uncertain about their own symptoms. Here’s what I’ve learned about the stages of becoming chronically ill.
Stage 1: Alarm
This is when you first realize your symptoms aren’t going away on their own. It may happen…
