For a long time, talking about illness has been more than a little taboo. We don’t like thinking about it, or talking about it and we definitely would never ‘glamourise’ it.
But one woman has done just that and now the internet is rife with people following her lead. Karolyn Gehrig is an artist suffering from Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS), an inherited disorder that affects the body’s connective tissues and forces her to be in hospital – a lot.
Sick of seeming invisible, Gehrig decided to post glamorous photos of herself using the hashtag #HospitalGlam to stop her feeling so invisible.
“I started posting #hospitalglam because it was frustrating to me that every time I got sicker I’d disappear from my commitments and then feel shy about explaining where I’d been when I knew there was absolutely nothing wrong with pursuing treatment for my disabling chronic illnesses,” Gehrig told The Huffington Post.
Gehrig says the photos of day-to-day life as a patient has helped her to cope with her illness.
“I began using some conventions of fashion photography to strip away ambiguity about my viewpoint and make it clear that I retain every part of myself through this battle,” Gehrig said. “I’m very excited to see how we can move forward and work on destigmatising illness en masse.”
Images via Twitter
My brain is messy but I love my lipgloss. #hospitalglam #neurology #er pic.twitter.com/CSpG5QUPaa
— karolyn gehrig (@karolynprg) November 27, 2014
#HospitalGlam The Chronic Illness Social Movement ft Black Milk. Wow. http://t.co/SDDwdsMsLD via @arabellesicardi pic.twitter.com/3aNWyLq9RO
— Black Milk Clothing (@BlackMilkTweets) January 13, 2015
A great doctor can change everything #hospitalglam #rheumatology #EhlersDanlosGrrrls #ehlersdanlos pic.twitter.com/fHRiNSguCb
— karolyn gehrig (@karolynprg) December 4, 2014
Could use more answers than I’m getting right about now. More appointments this week. #hospitalglam #neurology pic.twitter.com/7r7TJHLTTR
— karolyn gehrig (@karolynprg) December 3, 2014
Thanks for the notes! I’m low on energy and they’re checking to make sure my brain isn’t bleeding. Hanging in there. pic.twitter.com/U2FtfzjaL7
— karolyn gehrig (@karolynprg) November 27, 2014
Wild about these wires. More tests this morning. #hospitalglam #EhlersDanlosGrrrls #neurology pic.twitter.com/lenyVctoXP
— karolyn gehrig (@karolynprg) November 27, 2014
