You're Right... I'm Faking It!

I frequently travel through my life with a sense of a double identity as our society loudly screams frivolous ideas of success and popularity that seem to be difficult to ignore.  And as I attempt to "fit in" with my peers, I always find myself feeling slightly fake and two-faced.

As a woman living in a world brimming with photo-shop, snap-chat filters, and unrealistic glimpses into other people's lives via social media, it's easy to blindly chase after the false belief that in order for me to be a thriving influence in society I must be living up to society's standard:  I must be going to school full time, holding a job, eating the best tasting food, traveling to the most exotic places, fulfilling all my callings in the church, and I must be stunningly beautiful every day.  I must never have problems... and if I do I must keep my mouth shut in order to avoid causing anyone discomfort.  If I experience emotional pain, I must quickly throw it under the rug and pretend it doesn't exist.  I must smile... but not too wide and not too frequently.  I must be happy... but not too emotional or enthusiastic.  I must be tired... but simultaneously drill myself to accomplish all the to-do lists, schedules, and appointments.  And while I'm juggling all that... I must also be having the most fun and posting it all to Instagram and Facebook so that everyone else can feel bad about how they're not having enough fun.  Thank you social media for this unrealistic and impossible view of reality.

I've tried to be that girl.  That girl that has perfection in the bag.  That girl that appears to have vitality and richness overflowing in her life.  That girl that doesn't talk about her inward struggles in fear that she'll make other people uncomfortable or that she'll give the wrong image or idea.  But that girl is fake.  That girl isn't real.  That girl is living a double life and because I've always tried to be that girl, it makes it easy for my peers, associates, and family to assume that I'm not really sick.

"You don't look sick."
"She must be faking it."
"You're a beautiful girl that probably just feels like you're not getting enough attention."
"You must thrive off of attention."

Some of the comments that all chronic illness warriors hear on a regular basis cut us deep because we're simply trying to survive in our own skin to the best of our ability.  What's worse is the words that go unsaid.  What's worse is the gaping mouths and blank stares we receive that translates to the disbelief that any person actually suffers on that kind of level.  What's worse is the attempt of someone apologizing and stating how hard that must be because they don't know what else to say.  The silence is just as painful as harsh words simply because it traps us in the corner of disbelief where we constantly feel the need to prove that we're sick.  

So I'll be the first to admit it...  You're right... I'm faking it.

I'm faking the smile on my face when I'm trying so desperately to hold back tears.  I'm faking that I'm feeling okay when I'm usually riddled with muscle pain,  nerve pain, or severe anxiety.  I'm faking that I'm living life pain-free when there are so many times that I feel like I'm suffocating under my own skin.  I'm faking my sanity when I feel like there are bugs crawling under my skin.  I'm faking that I'm flying when at times I feel so utterly close to drowning beneath the pressure of it all.  I'm faking that my heart is whole and complete, when really it feels exhausted, broken, and bleeding.

When these things that I'm faking are expressed out loud, I simply feel inadequate.  I feel like I lack the ability to ever be "good enough."  I feel like it's my fault and if I just tried a little harder.... maybe my pain would subside.  I feel ashamed of my own existence, and I often wonder why at times it feels like the world keeps turning while my time stops and I'm trapped in one place until my inward storm chooses to cease for a while.  And as these feelings envelop me, the vicious cycle of feeling forced to "fake it" starts all over again.

So what's the solution?  Why does it matter if hundreds of thousands of people are roaming this earth pretending like everything is okay when on the inside we're all drowning in our sorrows and pain?

It matters because we can BE THE CHANGE that the world needs.  When we can recognize that there isn't a person on the face of the earth who is as "perfect" as social media makes them out to be, we begin to face our trials and understand others in an eye-opening way.  When we come to a place of understanding and compassion towards ourselves and others, then we are empowered to cope and deal with our adversities in a healthful way.   

We live in a society that believes that pain can be relieved with substances.  We cope with alcohol, drugs, pills, porn, food, or anything we can do to numb our afflictions.  But at some point, we have to realize that the SUBSTANCES DO NOT HEAL US.  The substances numb us to the harsh reality.  Instead of relying on substances, we can rely on God and on each other so we don't have to feel the desperate need to "fake it till' you make it."

LOVE is the key to healing.  "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son."  (John 3:16)  God loves us, so He gave us His son so that we don't have to suffer alone.  Christ knows of our pains and our sorrows, and He loves us all the same.  If we strive to be more like Him, we can act as a rock and relief for others who are suffering.  We don't have to have all of the answers for the chronically ill.  We don't have to take their physical pain away.  But what we can do is seek to understand the depths that others and in, and then... we simply love them through it.

Here's the joyful message of it all... Because I have a Savior who loves and sustains me... I can find pure joy through pain and illness, and I'm not faking it.  Because I know that people are more important than substances, I can understand that after I walk through my own furnace of affliction I develop the ability to love others through their afflictions.  I also understand that as I suffer I gain a greater capacity to later help others which in turn helps me.  What I stop trying so hard to fake it, I can be true to myself in enduring pain and happiness.

So the next time that you meet somebody, or the next time that you're talking to somebody... "treat them as if they are in serious trouble.  And you will be right more than half of the time."  (Henry B. Eyring)  It would all do us well to bring our shallow existences to a halt.  The next time that somebody says they are doing well and you sense that they are not, do not believe the words they speak.  Believe the silent plea for help in their eyes.  Believe their subtle look of discouragement and pure exhaustion.  Believe that little voice in your head telling you that maybe this person needs help.  Believe the inherent ability you have to love somebody through their pain. 

We all have that power.  May we seek with pure diligence to know how to help ignite that power in ourselves and in others.