An Autoimmune Warrior

Meet Stripey!

Stripey is my ally, my friend, my alter ego and my companion, my expression and my voice of reason; in short, I exist through Stripey and Stripey exists through me!

Stripey was born five years, 11 months and 3 days ago. I clearly recall the day when I was staring at my medical report in disbelief, reading a word that I barely knew how to pronounce. That day changed my life. From being someone who jumped into waterfalls without a thought, I suddenly became someone who could no longer lift a glass of water or walk up a flight of stairs with ease.

They say inspiration is everywhere. For me this cannot be more true. So much so that my current inspiration is actually a disease -Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA).

For the uninitiated, RA causes excruciating pain in the joints amongst many other things. And this pain is governed by causes as varied as diet, activity, the weather and emotions. In short- everything. My doctor suggested I keep a journal to better manage my condition and that was the start of it all. I replaced the journal with a sketchbook and started to draw everything I was feeling, thinking, eating or drinking.

What was originally intended only as a mundane record for my doctor, turned into my therapy. I realised that when I was drawing, I could go on and on without any complaint of pain. Just expressing my feelings on paper helped me release my agony. 

Before I knew it, I had created a character – ‘Stripey’ who began to live this experience with me. I now have books full of experiences, pains, and remedies in the form of illustrations, which I hope to publish someday, to create awareness for people going through autoimmune disorders.

To follow my journey with Rheumatoid Arthritis and see how Stripey is keeping up, please see my Instagram profile.