What is it with all these turtles?
Throughout my chronic illness journey, I kept coming across turtles. Here, there, and everywhere, they just kept appearing. It so happens turtles symbolize a lot of the same characteristics that chronic illness patients need to embody to endure the inevitable ups and downs that will occur throughout their journey.
Perseverance
As slow-moving as turtles are, they are incredibly persistent. They symbolize confidence and silent inner power. Most would consider the heavy shell on their back as a burden, but not the turtle. Despite having this extra weight on their backs, they manage to overcome any obstacle in their path with perseverance and resilience. As such, they are powerful symbols of physical and emotional endurance, making them the perfect chronic illness mascot.
Wisdom
Sea turtles are one of the most prominent symbols of wisdom. Due to their exceptionally long life-span, and how long they've been around on our planet, they have seen quite a lot! Chronic illness patients get thrown into the complex world of healthcare; a world that has a totally different language and method of navigation. In order to take care of themselves and live to their fullest potential, they have to take the time and learn the language, learn how to navigate through an incredibly complicated system of therapists, providers, and insurance. The wisdom gained is only lost if it is not shared to help others going through the same journey.
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Patience
As the fable goes, "slow and steady wins the race." Having complex health needs requires an incredible, almost in-human amount of patience. When finding the right providers, they have to go through five or more to find the right one for just one small part of their health, such as an endocrinologist or cardiologist. Some patients have ten or more providers; it can take years to build the right healthcare team for their unique needs. Finding the right doctors is just the first step, finding out what's wrong, and what the root cause of the issue is can take even longer; especially when it can take three months, six months, or even longer to get a single, 30 minute appointment with a specialist.
Strength
Turtle shells are extremely strong; they can impressively withstand thousands of pounds worth of pressure. Chronic illness patients have to carry around a lot on their shells everyday, regardless if other people can see it or not. Strength, in the chronic illness community, is not about being physically strong, it is about being mentally strong. Keeping their mental muscles strong is imperative to traversing the mind-field of chronic illness.