Author’s Notes
Creating Inclusive Spaces: Advocating for Invisible Illnesses
This document advocates creating inclusive spaces for those with invisible illnesses through awareness, empathy, education, supportive communities, shared stories, and collective advocacy to foster understanding and resilience.
Unseen Strength: Recognizing Your Hidden Resilience
Unseen Strength highlights the hidden resilience in daily actions amid chronic illness, encouraging self-awareness, celebrating small victories, sharing stories, and building supportive communities for growth and hope.
The Healing Power of Memoirs: Why Personal Stories Resonate Deeply
Memoirs like RJ Benda's "Built From the Broken" heal by fostering resilience, hope, and empathy. They connect readers, build supportive communities, and advocate for those facing chronic illness.
Living with Lupus: A Journey Through the Invisible
Living with lupus involves invisible daily struggles marked by pain and resilience. Building supportive communities fosters empathy, understanding, and hope, empowering those affected.
The Story Behind the Scar
The Story Behind the Scar: Why I Wrote My Memoir
A personal look at the scar on my chest, how surviving heart surgery and lupus shaped my life, and the emotional moment that made me realize my story deserved to be told.
Building Resilience: Cultivating Emotional Strength in the Face of Adversity
This guide explores building emotional resilience amid adversity, offering practical tips, insights from RJ Benda's lupus memoir, and emphasizing community support to foster hope and strength.
Invisible No More: Advocating for Invisible Illnesses and Joining the Movement
Invisible illnesses often go unseen, causing isolation and misunderstanding. Advocacy and community support are vital to raise awareness, challenge stigma, and improve lives of those affected.
A Wedding on the Lake
A Lakeside Pandemic Wedding: How an Intimate Ceremony Became Our Biggest Blessing
In the middle of the pandemic, we married beside a quiet lake in a simple, intimate ceremony. A deeply personal story of love, resilience, and unexpected beauty.