Reflections on Invisible Illness Awareness Week

Invisible Illness Awareness Week is nearly over. I am sitting at the computer reading through some of the many the blogs, articles, comments and more that people have been posting on their experiences facing a world who does not understand their pain.

Wow.

Truly. . . wow.

You have been refreshingly honest, yet hopeful.
You have shared your pain, but kept it in perspective.
You have shared your hurt feelings, but without bitterness.

I am in awe of all of you who have shared your hearts. . . and your hopes.

Here are a few of the things that I have read that touched me deeply.

• I get so depressed when people just don’t get why I don’t or can’t do things they are so unaware of the pain and exhaustion. So, I just have been trying to get the message out there [about Invisible Illness Awareness Week]!
• Between work, pain, fatigue and friends I’ve become rather isolated because of it all. But taking it just one day at a time.
• I have to take so many medicines, and I am so just so tired of the whole thing – that is until I read this article. After I wiped away the tears, I began to realize that I have to start to really ‘live’ with the fact that I will have to take some of the medications for the rest of my life – and that’s ok.
• I attempted suicide in 2004 because the burden of pain and emotional distress was too much for me to continue battling. It was an eye-opening experience where I learned that I had to live for my three children. They were the reason that I decided to call my husband and tell him what I had done. And it’s still because of them that I continue to push through day after day of pain. God spoke to me that night and said to me, “You have three babies downstairs.” That voice was so loud and clear and distinctly not mine. I knew it was Him telling me to live for them. So I did.

You may not be surprised about the pain that people feel, but I also hear so much hope.

You have shared things like. . .

• So I’m here to encourage all of you to live. There can be joyous moments in between the pain.
• The point is, think of things that you are capable of doing, that you really enjoy, and do them! Don’t let your pain take over your life! Your pain does not define you
• Coping with a crisis is and probably always will be hard. But with a better idea of what helps me push through I have more confidence in my ability to survive just about anything. You can do the same by coming up with an approach that suits your needs and tendencies before you need to cope with your next crisis.
• I shared the hurt I felt and explained how I did not want to feel pitied or be a burden. My family and friends reached out and I opened my heart and let them in. Something happened, something magical that brought us each closer to one another.

It is so easy for illness to cut the confidence, attack our personality, and end relationships. Each of you have said in some way, “I can accept this illness without allowing it to define me.”

This year’s theme has been “Deep Breath, Start Fresh,” and throughout the posts and the comments, you have put this theme into eloquent words that express this in beautiful ways.

My deepest thanks for all the ways you have helped those with invisible chronic illnesses and hidden pain this week. You have stepped forward, crossed the comfort zone, and shared your heart and your hope and you have made a significance difference.

Lisa Copen is the founder of Rest Ministries and she lives in San Diego with her husband and son. She is gradually learning how to balance motherhood, family, illness, and ministry, but she still knows it will be a lifetime lesson. You can see the books she has written, including, Why Can’t I Make People Understand? at the Rest Ministries shop.

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Featured Workshops Today: Working and Chronic Illness

If you are one of the millions of people who live with a chronic illness and yet you still get up and go to work every morning, you may find there is a lack of resources for your particular situation. Although you may feel as though you do not necessarily fit in with the career-oriented people who are healthy and not suffering from challenges on a daily basis, you may also feel that you do not specifically relate to those who are home a great deal of time and not able to physically work.

We have found some wonderful resources for you and you will discover that having chronic illness does not prevent you from also having an exceptional career. Although the career you have originally chosen may no longer be possible due to your situation and physical limitations, that does not mean that there are not thousands of career options that you may still choose from, a few which are likely to feel passionate about.

In fact, you may find that having a chronic condition may help you narrow in on your passions and what you enjoy the most, and thereby, make your career choice, an intentional one which can serve you in years to come.

Join us for a couple of workshops where we speak about careers and chronic illness and working well when chronically ill.

Are you interested in “Finding the Job You Desire and Can Do? Rosalind Joffe will be you through the process of looking at what your abilities are (and yes, your inabilities now) and how to go about choosing a wise career path that can work well with the and picked ability of your chronic illness, as well as those leadership skills you have mastered due to managing your illness effectively.

You will also hear from some people who have started their own business, such as Jennie Krogulski who is the founder of Hilton Head Nannies and works each day to best accommodate her career path as well as the daily difficulties with her chronic condition. Rosalind Joffe built on her own experience of living with chronic illnesses for 30 years, including multiple sclerosis and ulcerative colitis, when she founded cicoach.com. And Trish Robichaud is a Maximum Life & Healthy Relationship Coach who lives with multiple sclerosis & major depression. See Illness, Work, Career, and Starting Your Own Business

You also have the opportunity to hear from Lisa about starting Rest Ministries, the founder of Invisible Illness Week. She shares how she has Managed Chronic Illness and a Nonprofit Organization.

This year instead of having a live virtual conference we are featuring some amazing workshops from past years. You can find them all here on Blog Talk Radio or, if you use itunes, enter “invisible illness” under “podcasts” and then download them to a music player to listen to anytime. >More instructions here

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Featured Workshops Today: Communicating With Others

Communicating is a big deal when it comes to making some practical steps toward living with joy. We recommend the following workshops from past years.
“Helping Others Understand Your Pain” with Karen Lee Richards, a writer and patient advocate who works at HealthCentral and lives with fibromyalgia.

It’s OK to say NO: Building Healthy Boundaries” with Jenni Prokopy is a nice reminder that we are allowed to take care of ourselves. Jenni is the founder of chronicbabe.com and a journalist.

And “How You Can Help Those Who Help You” with author Jo Franz who lives with multiple sclerosis.

Times get tough when you are “Coping with Crises on Top of Chronic.” Join Jenni Saake (founder of Hannah’s Hope: Seeking God’s Heart in the Midst of Infertility, Miscarriage & Adoption Loss ) and Lisa Copen founder Rest Ministries, as we chat about surving crises in the midst of Chronic illness. Between the two of us, Lisa and Jenni have survived 45 years of multiple chronic illnesses including Chronic Fatigue Immunity Dysfunction Syndrome (ME/CFS), rheumatoid arthritis, fibromyalgia, diabetes, endometriosis, infertility, chemical sensitivities and more.

These women know that life doesn’t stop just because we are in pain. Hear us share our hearts and experiences through surgeries, infections, IV therapies, broken bones, unemployment, adoption journeys, and grief ranging from miscarriages to the deaths of grandparents. We will share a few survival skills for coping with the stress of everyday life when crisis hits.

This year instead of having a live virtual conference we are featuring some amazing workshops from past years. You can find them all here on Blog Talk Radio or, if you use itunes, enter “invisible illness” under “podcasts” and then download them to a music player to listen to anytime. >More instructions here

Popularity: 5% [?]

Featured Workshops Today: Searching For Self Understanding

Do you ever feel a bit emotionally stuck? Whether you have the blues or have gone through some major depression, some our favorite marriage and family therapists join us with their seminars, as well as some illness advocates. All of these women Lisa is honored to call friend.

Here are some of their workshops we know you will enjoy and hopefully get something wonderful and helpful out of!

“Living with Chronic Illness: Why It Hurts, How to Cope” Georgia Shaffer, Maureen Pratt, and Mary Yerkes join us in an interview style 1-hour conversation. There are some powerful tools that can start helping you today!

A bit about these women:

Georgia Shaffer is a licensed psychologist in Pennsylvania and a certified life coach. For over 15 years, she has enhanced people’s lives by teaching how to identify: “What needs to grow? What needs to go?”

Author and speaker Maureen Pratt lives with multiple illnesses, including organ-involved lupus, cardiovascular disease, osteoarthritis, hypothyroidism, and chronic back pain. Through her books, including “Peace in the Storm: Meditations on Chronic Pain & Illness,” she encourages others to deepen their faith and Christian walk in spite of and with living with chronic illness.

Mary Yerkes is a professional life coach who specializes in working with the chronically ill. Diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune diseases in 1997, Mary combines years of practical experience with her professional training to help the chronically ill build meaningful and significant lives.

More programs you will love!

In the program, “Understanding How we Uniquely Deal with Difficulties in Life,” Georgia Shaffer explains how we handle the stress of illness in our lives is very unique to us. Our personality, faith, coping skills and more all come together and one person’s way is not better or worse than anothers.

Leslie Vernick shares with us something we all encounter at one time or another: “Dealing with Hurt Feeling and Mixed Up Relationships.” Leslie Vernick is a Christian counselor who doing most of her work with relationship problems. She focuses on improving relationships with others, God and self, teaching people how to address conflict, speak the truth in love, handle adversity in a God-centered way and negotiate through difficult and destructive relationships with biblical principles.

Regardless of your faith, Leslie will give some practical tools and tips to help you with the people in your life. When things go wrong in relationships, is someone at fault? Do you feel like you would have responded differently if your illness didn’t get in the way? Leslie will explain how to respond when things don’t turn out the way we’d hoped.

If you feel like there are times when you are messing up your own life, you’ll want to listen to Jenny Prokopy’s presentation, “Overcoming Self-Defeating Behaviors” Jenni is the founder of the popular chronicbabe.com

This year instead of having a live virtual conference we are featuring some amazing workshops from past years. You can find them all here on Blog Talk Radio or, if you use itunes, enter “invisible illness” under “podcasts” and then download them to a music player to listen to anytime. >More instructions here

Popularity: 4% [?]

Is Living With Illness Choosing to Give In?

Lisa Copen

Nearly one in two people live with an illness, and most chronic illnesses are invisible. Conditions such as chronic fatigue syndrome to diabetes rarely have visual side effects that people can see. It creates a challenge for those who live with invisible daily chronic pain, symptoms, and side effects.

For example, though I look fine on the outside, I have lived with rheumatoid arthritis for 18 years. It has been degenerative, despite the best of medical treatments. Recent tests have revealed that I have shoulders that are so disintegrated it’s amazing they still work, knees full of pieces of bone and old blood clots, and osteoporosis.

I have started seeing a new rheumatologist who I hope will more aggressively treat my disease and slow down its progression. I am 42. I told my physician, “My son is 8. I need at least 10 more good years. What can I do to make this happen?”

Despite the detours, I have had the opportunity to build a nonprofit organization of nearly 15 years, to serve those who live with chronic illness, through a Christian foundation of faith. Although I believe God still heals today, He rarely does it according to our schedule. In the meantime, there is a strong need for friendship and support.

Between my family and ministry, I have ample reason to get up out of bed each day and not allow my illness to define me.

I have never given in and allowed it to consume me.

But because I do not enter marathons, audition for reality TV show contests on deserted islands, or sign up for karate class, some people assume I have.

“You’ve just given in to your illness,” I have heard from both strangers and friends. “You need to fight it more.” This is often followed by their specific advice on what I need to do to “fight it.”

What defines “giving in” to your illness? There are a variety of ways that people who do not have an illness define the actions of those who are ill.

1. We are not using the alternative treatment of product that they sell that will make it all go away.

My husband was recently berated by a friend’s wife, “We are so mad at you guys!”
“Why?” he asked.
“Because you won’t try the water!” she replied.
Honestly, I’ve done my research and if I am going to go with a marketing scheme that promotes health benefits for just $200+ a month, it will be the chocolate one. I mean, who doesn’t like chocolate?

2. We are seeking health assistance from doctors or medical specialists.

A friend on recently posted on a social network that he cured himself of a disease by ignoring the “mumbo jumbo of doctors” and asking his dad for advice. He claims he “never gave in.” In his eyes, because I am seeing a rheumatologist with “MD” behind his name, I have chosen to give in. No one cares that my rheumatologist happens to have his own clinic about specialized medicine, and that has written books on the alternative treatments he uses with patients, in addition to Western medicine.

3. We are pacing ourselves.

Chronic illness uses up a great deal of energy and only the one who lives within the body knows what they can and cannot do on particular days. Sometimes we have to give it our best guess and make a choice, not positive if an event will cause us to be tired for twelve hours or four days. When we choose to not attend an outing we’d planned on because we are in deep pain, we frequently hear, “Oh, you are just giving in to your illness. You are letting it control you.” No, we had to make a choice and we did. Healthy people will understand this when they reach about age 80.

4. We are not where someone wants us to be spiritually.

We all grieve, we question, and we sometimes get depressed, regardless of our faith. But if these emotions are noticed by others they are quick to offer the spiritual version of “Don’t worry, be happy.” We are told that we are allowing the sin in our lives to get the better of us and it’s causing our illness. We are not praying consistently, or hard enough, or in the right way. One man recently told me that I needed to try a particular alternative treatment (that he happened to sell) and if I did not, then it was obvious I was just giving in to my illness and really did not want to get well … and that God knew that!

5. We are not doing physical activities that we are expected to do.

If you watch well known magazines written specifically for those with certain illnesses, even they are guilty of featuring people who have the disease but are still able to do extreme physical activities. A person with rheumatoid arthritis may run a 25-mile marathon and are quoted saying, “I chose to never give up.” I have chosen to never give up either, but I am blessed to get my feet into extra-wide diabetic shoes and walk around the grocery store. My own limitations, or those of one who uses a wheelchair each day, is not something that is a measurement of determination or stubbornness about our disease.

Each person who live with a chronic illness knows the daily difficulties in finding a balance between living his life in the fullest way possible, and managing his disease effectively at the same time. There will be many times that our choices do not make sense to people around us. When we hold back from a new treatment or a fun outing, we will be told we are “giving in” and letting our illness define us. And when we take a chance and stretch ourselves, we will be told we are not thinking things through or considering the consequences or risks involved in our choice.

If you live with a chronic illness, only you are capable of making the wisest choice possible based on many factors. If you love someone with an illness, be cautious in sharing your opinion about his or her decisions. If you are genuinely concerned, instead of offering advice, ask questions, such as, “I know you must have given a lot of thought to your decision to (fill in your blank here.) What was it that persuaded you?”

About the Author: Lisa Copen is the author of “Beyond Casseroles: 505 Ways to Encourage a Chronically Ill Friend”, founder of National Invisible Chronic Illness Awareness Week and Rest Ministries. She is a sought-after speaker who brings joy, humor, and hope, to those who live with chronic illness, from her own 18-year journey with rheumatoid arthritis. This article was formerly featured at the Huffington Post where you can read 40 comments.

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“You Look So Good!” To Wear Make Up or Not?

Michelle Williams

Makeup can cover a multitude of defects; including some of the signs of our illnesses. I notice that when I wear makeup not only do I look better, but my demeanor changes as well. Makeup seems to be a little pick-me-up in the way I feel about myself, even if it is for a short time.

I realize that it may be a sign of vanity; that we should embrace what God has given us. I believe I am just enhancing what God has given me. What I mean is that I am just covering up the imperfections the many years of chronic illness has left behind and shining forth the image that God has originally created.

At the same time I also notice that people will treat me differently when I am wearing makeup. When I wear makeup I look healthier and in so doing I will get the old, “You look so good–you must be feeling better!” Don’t you just wish they would stop at, “You look so good”? When they add the other you feel like you need to explain yourself. “Thank you, but makeup covers a multitude of flaws. I really feel. . .”

Even my doctors will say something like that if I wear makeup to my appointments. When I don’t wear makeup to my appointment the doctor will ask if I am depressed. I will tell him, “No, I just want you to see how I feel as well. The yellowish complexion, the blotchy rash on my face and nose, the dark circles under my sunken eyes, the multitude of colors in my complexion. . .“

No matter what people may think or say, I wear makeup more for me. I seem to feel better about myself. I know it is just camouflaging the outward signs of my chronic illness, but at least every time I pass the mirror the multitude of times I have to go to the bathroom each day, I don’t have to see those many imperfections that my illnesses have left behind.

If wearing a little bit of makeup each day gives me a little pick-me-up then so be it. I just wish people would just stop at, “You look so good!”

About the Author: Michele Williams lives in a beautiful mountain community in Pennsylvania with her husband of 37 years who is a Pastor and Teacher at a Christian school. They have a grown daughter, son-in-law, teenage grandson and three furry children. Through the years the Lord has called them to various ministries in the United States where Michele has been involved in all aspects of church ministry in addition: Pastor’s Wife, Child Evangelism, Regional Women’s Ministry, Wellness Ministry, Speaker, Counselor and Writer.

Michele has experienced various life challenges including living with multiple chronic illnesses since 1985. Some of those include: fibromyalgia, osteoarthritis, peripheral neuropathy, interstitial cystitis, IBS, chemical sensitivities, asthma, sleep apnea, and treated for SLE lupus (among other illnesses). She enjoys encouraging and informing others through her blog: Beelieve You Can!, http://www.beelieveyoucan.net

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Healing Words

Deanna Nichols

“The words of the reckless pierce like swords, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.” -Proverbs 12:18

Yesterday I had a great conversation with a health and fitness coach with whom I recently started working. Not only did she give me some great ideas to work toward my personal goals, but I also found myself leaving the conversation with a lot more hope than I’ve felt in a long time. It’s interesting I should be so hopeful because I’m really having a tough time physically right now. And we also spent a fair amount of time discussing my past history of chronic illness, a topic that usually drains me and makes me sad.

Instead, she was able to focus on the accomplishments I’ve made in the past two years toward a healthier me.

I later realized my coach did a simple yet powerful thing: she used her words to bring healing–healing to my spirit and even to my body. After we spoke I was more inspired to remain on the path of a healthy lifestyle, and I was so energized by hope that I went ahead and started my new exercise program that I’ve been putting off for months because I didn’t feel well enough to try. Which, in turn, inspired me to eat healthy and work out again today. And maybe I’m imagining things, but my current flaring health symptoms seem to be better too.

Recently I’ve had a lot of reckless words spoken into my life and my health situation. Well-meaning family members, friends, and doctors have said things that to some degree, robbed me of hope, faith, and joy. It’s been a fierce battle in my heart to fight off the constant barrage of negativity their words created. What a contrast with my experience yesterday!

This is a great lesson for all of us. Before we share that “helpful” idea or something “the Lord laid on our heart” that our loved one “needs” to hear, let’s ask ourselves if we are planting seeds of hope and healing or if we are truly piercing them with the sword of our reckless words.

“Set a guard over my mouth, O Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips.” (Psalm 141:3)

About the Author: Deanna Nichols is a woman of faith searching for purpose in the midst of a lifetime of physical illness and pain. She has been diagnosed with narcolepsy with cataplexy, polycystic ovarian disease, Hashimoto’s thyroid disease, and many others. Her chronic illnesses make it impossible for her to work or even drive, so she is mostly home-bound. She is on the Board of Directors for her family’s commercial lawn maintenance business, is an avid reader and book reviewer, and uses social networking to encourage people with chronic illness, educate those without illness, as well as to share what she’s learned regarding natural health. She lives in Northeast Florida with her husband of 12 years and their 5 furry children. Read Deanna’s blog A Fragile Faith.

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Invisible Illness Week Now Accepting Articles For This Site

We have now opened up over submission page for articles and blogs to be featured on this website in the coming two months. I am looking forward to hearing your feedback on what it is like to live with a chronic condition that is invisible.

To submit your complete article, bio, and photo, click on the link above that says “Submit Article.”

Here are some of the topics we are looking for and your post should be trained 300 and 750 words.

• Our theme this year is “Deep Breath, Start Fresh” – what does this to you and how you live chronic illness?

What has your experience been in coping with…

• Physical needs that are not apparent to others because you look well
• Expectations from those around you, from your spouse to your boss, because you look well
• How your children perceive your chronic condition
• How you choose to reveal or not reveal the seriousness of your illness
• How you deal with your illness on a daily basis. When it is invisible is easier to deny the seriousness of it?
• The looks. . . when you park in a handicapped spot legally to when you explain your unable to walk very far
• Still finding joy in life despite some limitations
• How physicians and other medical care professionals don’t even understand that your pain is quite invisible
• How do have sought to bring awareness about invisible illness as in healthcare advocate
• How you have tried to explain to your loved ones about having invisible illnesses or a hidden disability
• and the list goes on!

We are eager to hear from you about the emotions of living with a chronic condition, how you have found yourself dealing with difficult circumstances, how you overcome the need to stay in bed and hide from the world are most difficult days, what ever is on your mind!

Before you submit your article you should have a third person biographies ready to go that is less than 150 words and contained only one week. If you submit more than this it will be edited and you may not be pleased with which part we keep. Please do not submit a link to your article on your website but rather the actual article, which you will copy and paste into our form. If it does not have the article in the form, it will be deleted.

And if you are talking about your illness or Invisible Illness Week we hope you will join our Bloggers Unite group so that other people can be sure to visit your website and read your postings.

Thank you so much,
Lisa Copen

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Listen to Invisible Illness Week Workshops Any Time for Encouragement

Did you happen to make some of our podcast seminars during National Invisible Chronic Illness Awareness Week? We had some amazing guests as our panelists who contributed to a successful week of inspiration, information, and education.

One of my favorite emails from of listener that I just received this weekend says:

“I listened to the broadcast on Monday. I cried through the whole thing. I listened to it a few more times because I missed too much (crying). I felt so validated for the first time in 5 years. It doesn’t matter that my disease is a 1 in 200,000 what was discussed was common to all. I have no idea the hours of labor you put into the week or the finances or the physical cost to your body that such an undertaking had but I know it had to be great. I just want you to know that your labors made a difference. . . Just learning that what I feel is common to all who suffer with chronic illness made me realize that though I sometimes feel like I am isolated God is right there with me every step.”

Wow. Tears came to my eyes as I read her entire email (this is just a portion above) and then I printed it out and read it to my husband.

To all of you who helped me make this week possible, thank you.

Now. . . head on over to Invisible Illness Week podcasts at Blog Talk Radio to get some more encouragement. You may even find an episoide from 2008 or 2009 that strikes a chord with you too! You can also find our Invisible Illness Week programs in the Apple itunes store for free if you want to download them to your ipod.

Related articles

• National Invisible Illness Week Features Virtual Conference This Week (invisibleillnessweek.com)
• Press Release – Invisible Illness Week Bloggers Driving Force Behind Awareness Campaign (invisibleillnessweek.com)

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How to Decide Your Career Future When Chronically Ill

By Jennie Krogulski

Most of us with a debilitating chronic illness, if asked, would admit that as we traveled along the journey of life, we never saw this train called “Limitations” coming and if we had, we certainly would moved heaven and earth to get out of the way. As children we dreamed of what our lives would hold and who we would be, encouraged by those who loved us to dream big and wide. But what do you do when the life you have so carefully been creating and carving out begins to fall apart around you because of your illness?

What happens when you are no longer able to hold down a job five days a week, so you go to four, then three, and then even two becomes too much.

I was there four years ago and it was the scariest and loneliest time of my life. After twelve years of being sick, I could no longer manage many of the simplest tasks of daily living, which included holding down a steady job. Eventually, my disease, which was undiagnosed at the time, progressed to the point that I was unable to hold my arms above my head for five seconds at a time or walk more than a few hundred feet.

However, mounting medical bills and household bills still had to be paid. After pushing my body to it’s limits—I finally conceded that I had no choice but to recreate my lifestyle and find a way to work from home.

While some may see this as a luxury, for many with chronic illness it is the only way we can survive. What and how recreating your lifestyle looks like will be dependent on many factors:

• Your current field of work: Is it suitable for a work-at-home environment?
• Your relationship with your employer: Are they flexible?
• The way your home is set up: Do you have room to work from home?
• Your financial situation: Do you have funds set back to start up a small business if needed?
• Access to equipment: Do you have a dependable computer/laptop, printer, phone, etc.?
• Your abilities: What are your talents, gifts, and skills that you could use to start a small business from home that would work with your physical limitations?

Once you have carefully taken all these factors into consideration, you can begin putting a plan into place that works for you and your family. As you recreate your lifestyle, the challenges you live with on a daily basis won’t go away—but they will become more bearable. When your body is wracked with pain, you can work in your pajamas propped up in a cushiony bed. Instead of sitting at a desk in an office chair all day, you can create a “desk” space around a sofa that is more comfortable with a laptop and a laptop stand.

I started transitioning into this change in 2005, and made the permanent lifestyle change in 2007 when I opened my business, Hilton Head Nannies. Having a chronic illness and living with daily challenges, pain, and limitations certainly isn’t the life I signed up for when I dreamed about my future as a child long ago. However, I am a firm believer that there is a purpose in every serious/chronic illness and a story to be told as God’s plan unfolds. I am still learning to embrace God’s plan for my life. Each day as I turn to Him and ask for His help in recreating my lifestyle, I am finding joy, peace, and hope that break through the disease and pain and make me dream like a child again.

God bless you as you pray about what He has in store for you! Jeremiah 29:11 says “For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’”

Jennie Krogulski resides in beautiful Bluffton SC, just off the coast of Hilton Head Island. She lives with Dermatomyositis, Fibromyalgia, Toxoplasmosis, Hypothyroidism, and an iron absorption disorder. Jennie owns Hilton Head Nannies, a national placement agency, and most recently started a social services agency—Lowcountry Family Connections. Jennie delights in spending time with family & friends, and being “Jen Jen” to the many children in her life.

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