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Invisible illness
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==Effects == The effects of having a chronic illness that is invisible include: * Difficulty finding appropriate medical care * Difficulty getting diagnosed, and difficulty describing symptoms *Symptoms may be inappropriately blamed on stress, known as [[psychologization]] *Inappropriate [[psychosomatic illness|psychosomatic treatment]] approaches can cause harm * Accusations of laziness or malingering, or having a disability illness [[tired all the time|denigrated and dismissed]] * Significant symptoms may be dismissed as the result of age, or [[Hypochondriasis|variations in everyday experiences]], which can lead to [[anxiety]] and [[depression]] * Lack of support from friends and family * Suspicion and withdrawal from others * Confusion, loneliness, feelings of self-pity and self-doubt *Denial of support from the healthcare and [[disability]] systems, causing avoidable physical and financial harm<ref name="Arroll2014" /><ref name="Donoghue2000"/><ref name="JoachimAcorn" /><ref name="Pilkington2020" /><ref name="Selak2012">{{Cite book | title = You Don't Look Sick!: Living Well With Chronic Invisible Illness|isbn=978-1-936303-42-7|language=en | url =https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=1FX2_VQ_I38C&lpg=PP1&dq=what%20is%20an%20invisible%20illness&pg=PR15#v=onepage&q=what%20is%20an%20invisible%20illness&f=true | date = 2012-12-17|publisher=Demos Medical Publishing | last = Selak | first = Joy H. | last2 = MD | first2 = Steven S. Overman}}</ref> [[File:Toxic-positivity-chronicillness.png|thumb|alt=Popular books preach a type of control by strong mind and positive attitude, which motivates some to a better life but crushes others. The chronically ill can berate themselves for not being well. - Donoghue and Siegel (2000)]]<br style="clear:both"> Some invisible illnesses do not have a particular [[diagnostic biomarker|diagnostic test]] or are relatively rare, which can mean that some doctors doubt patients, leading to them [[Medical neglect and abuse|neglecting]] the patient's basic medically needs.<ref name="McGarvey2020" /> An invisible illness is not necessarily a mild or non-serious illness, for example when HIV/AIDS first emerged it caused many deaths and had few visible signs until the disease was in the later stages.
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