Many people with ME find themselves at a loss when asked to describe themselves. They know that they are intelligent, dedicated and creative, but it can be difficult to find the words to articulate these qualities in a way that makes sense to others.
Fortunately, there are a number of resources available to those with ME/CFS and their families. These organizations offer information and support to help individuals navigate the complexities of living with ME/CFS, obtain health insurance, apply for disability benefits and find work accommodations.
One important thing to remember is that ME is a relapsing-remitting illness and symptoms can be different from day to day, week to week or month to month. The hallmark symptom is debilitating fatigue that cannot be explained by any other disease and is not improved by rest. Some patients also have other chronic health conditions (comorbidities) such as fibromyalgia, irritable bowel syndrome, gastroparesis or Ehler’s Danlos syndrome.
For more about ME, we recommend watching the film UNREST, a Sundance award winning documentary that explores how ME impacts the lives of the people who live with it. ME is often misunderstood and stigmatized, which can lead to disbelief and discrimination from family, friends, colleagues and the healthcare system.
The ME/CFS community needs more voices to raise awareness about this invisible disease, and to promote understanding, compassion and hope. The more people that understand ME/CFS, the more people will be able to get the help and services they need.
If you are planning to interview for a job, it is important to practice answering the question: “How would you describe yourself?” A good strategy is to focus on your strengths and highlight how these qualities can benefit the company. It is important to avoid negative phrases that can be interpreted as weaknesses or flaws.
Using a “Who am I?” quiz can be a fun and helpful tool to remove the guesswork from this question. The basic rules of a “Who am I?” game are fairly simple: Each player writes down the name of a person or object, such as a famous celebrity or historical figure, on a post it note and then hands it to the next player without looking at it. Players then ask questions about the famous figure or object to try to figure out who or what it is. The player who guesses correctly wins the game.
If you are interested in trying a “Who am I?” quiz, there are a variety of websites that have a list of questions with the answers rated according to Jungian psychology. However, it is important to remember that the results of a “Who am I?” quiz are not scientific and should not be used to make any major life decisions.