For the past decade I’ve been battling Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Fibromyaliga and skin problems ranging from Chronic Hives to mild psoriasis. This month I added pneumonia on top of all that. I finally understand what old people mean when they say, “I’m tired and ready to die.” I had nothing left to give, and still, really, don’t. I have moments where some energy finds its way into me, but mostly? I sleep a lot.
I recently learned that fatigue, joint pain, foggy brain, tiredness, muscle aches, and all these symptoms I’ve …

“But you don’t look sick.”
If I hear it one more time I may get sick. A friend of mine sent me an email about an ABC reporter looking for someone to interview about Chronic Fatigue Syndrome today. So I emailed her and she called and we ended up talking for awhile about the thing I’m almost more passionate about than homelessness - Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and Fibromyalgia.
I have them both and have had since I was 36, although it took much longer to get the diagnosis. Doctors told me I …

In Anytown, USA or Anytown, The World, there’s a widget factory that employs 100 people. There’s production, shipping, administrative, sales, all the departments any factory would have. Things are going along as always until one day one of the administrative people gets sick. She’s the girl who orders all the supplies for the supervisors. It’s no big deal because she keeps things well-stocked and no one misses her.
The folks on the production floor hear about her illness and shrug.
“Doesn’t affect me,” they say, going on about their business.
The folks in …

Several years ago, before I was actually off of the streets and into an apartment, I interviewed Tonya Pinkins. As a matter of fact, she was my FIRST interview at a new job. I was still sleeping in my van, but I was staying at a campground and every other week or so the newspaper would put me up in a local hotel for a few days while I hunted for an apartment.
During this first week of the new job I was sent to interview Tonya, an Emmy awarding winning …

August is an anniversary month for me. Over the past ten years several people I know have committed suicide. August is a tough time emotionally for me. Every year my thoughts turn to friends and family who have checked out this way and it’s sad.
Depression is a strange thing. It can be temporary, linked to an event (such as a parent or child’s or friend’s death), or it can be clinical - meaning related to chemical changes in the body. We can be depressed and not feel suicidal, or …