"I had to fight to be taken seriously.." Kathryn's story of dismissal and learning to live with chronic illness.

Even when I was little, I struggled with feeling different. I was born two months early and diagnosed with chronic sinusitis, which shaped much of my early childhood. I got sick every few weeks, battled frequent ear infections, and often felt unwell when other kids were carefree. I had multiple sets of ear tubes—more than most kids ever needed—and spent a lot of time in doctor’s offices. Thankfully, I began to outgrow the worst of it by the time I turned 11, though some lingering symptoms never fully went away.

For a few years, I felt like I was finally doing well. But at 14, everything changed again. I began experiencing debilitating headaches, and despite my symptoms, I had to fight to be taken seriously. Several doctors dismissed my pain as anxiety or something related to my premature birth. Eventually, I was diagnosed with chronic migraines. Unfortunately, the medication I was prescribed didn’t help—in fact, it made things worse.

Then, at 18, I was finally diagnosed with dysautonomia, a condition that explained so many of the symptoms I had been living with. I was put on a new medication that, for the first time in a long while, actually helped me manage my symptoms and reclaim pieces of my life.

I’ve learned so many things about this journey—about my body, about resilience, and about how often young people are unheard in medical spaces.

Though I still live with symptoms every day, I’m learning how to navigate life with them—and that’s a strength I carry with me always.