Managing an Invisible Disease as a Musician: Part 2
Last week I posted my story of dealing with an invisible disease. I shared my new career portfolio percentages and the surprising benefits that came from the change. Check out Part 1 before reading below.
What Can You Do To Manage Your Invisible Disease as a Musician?
Find a team of doctors that are willing to hear your entire story and advocate for your health. In my case, I had a Rheumatologist that wouldn’t give me more than 6 minutes to talk after waiting 5 months for an appointment. She then prescribed one of the most dangerous, life-long meds (Humira) to treat an issue that can be treated with food. I needed a doctor that would hear me out and was looking at the big picture, and my integrative doctor helped me discover severe issues within my gut flora…my chronic joint inflammation was the result of an intestinal disorder! Find a good doctor.
Find a community of people that understand you. Dealing with an invisible (or visible) illness is isolating, so finding ways to connect with people about these issues can be empowering and also helpful for discovering resources. I created the Musicians Career Design & Management group to create a community around healthy careers for musicians for this very reason.
Create boundaries in your work and personal life. Stress causes my chronic illness to flare, so I created numerous boundaries that protect my health. Some ideas on boundaries:
Limit time with people that drain your energy
Say NO to gigs that don’t align with your goals
Set limits on extroverted/introverted work depending on your personality. For me, I don’t go over 4 hrs of lessons/meetings per day so I can recharge with other types of work.
Shift your career portfolio to make room for healing as you are able.
Craft a health pitch so your friends/family/colleagues know what you are dealing with. Think of your health pitch like an elevator pitch for a business, a short summary of what your issue is, how it manifests in real life, and how you are managing it.
Engage musical skills and extra-musical skills that could connect with your why, generate income, and preserve your energy. For me, I recognized a mentor/coach approach to teaching lessons along with a high interest in careers and business skills, so I forged the two together to create my career coaching program COSM Conscious Self-Management for Musicians.
Advocate for yourself and share your story. This one can be tough, but probably the most powerful way to manage your invisible disease is by always advocating for yourself in the five categories above. No one has your exact set of struggles, so sharing your story will help break down communication barriers and feelings of isolation. Sharing your story also helps to further de-stigmatize being a musician with an invisible illness and encourages support around these issues.