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Meet Me: The Medical Zebra

Blog Author, Laura (Laurie Girl)



  Hey there, thanks for stopping by! Nice to meet you! Let me introduce myself! I often introduce myself like this, “Hi, I’m Laura!” What that all includes is I’m almost thirty, an identical twin, I am dorky as heck, I’m unique, I am a lover of all things llamas, alpacas, and cats. Okay I love animals (even if I am skittish around some). I'm a music fan. I love getting lost in a TV show, especially period dramas and romances. I enjoy reading (when I can concentrate). I love trees, the sky and nature. Getting lost in my own thoughts. I volunteer with a nonprofit that I am passionate about. I enjoy the little things in life.

  Oh I forgot to mention, in the chronic illness world I am also known as Laurie Girl. Speaking of the chronic illness world…I’m part of it. And even more unique, I am a Medical Zebra. Yup, I am rare. I have chronic and rare diseases and conditions. Some of my main medical zebra stripes are Trigeminal Neuralgia (TN) and Occipital Neuralgia (ON). 

  I am also considered especially extra rare due to developing TN at such a young age. Those under forty are rarer to get Trigeminal Neuralgia; I developed my disease at the age of seventeen. However, I didn’t gain my diagnosis until I was almost twenty-six. That was incredibly hard. After entering support groups online, and no longer feeling so alone, I decided in 2020 to start sharing my journey with TN on Instagram. By doing that I came across others like me, rare, and we connected. I never thought I would gain friendships from such a terrible pain. Posting and writing about my condition helped me tremendously; I was able to share truly what it felt like to hurt physically, emotionally and mentally from such chronic pain and one that many just have never heard about including medical professionals. 

  So why start a blog if I already have a space to share? Well, the answer is simple (like me), I'm someone who wants to feel free to share all their thoughts, without a word limit; I want to share openly and honestly about chronic illness life as a rare disease patient. So here’s to honesty, openness, no word limits and zebra stripes! 

Follow The Medical Zebra on Instagram! Scan the QR code below! 





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