If I was an Illness Script: A visual representation of me, myself, and I
Reflecting on the inspiration for this piece, I remember joking that creating illness scripts has been my lifeboat for a long clerkship year. Though unconventional, I thought, “why not make one of myself”? I began work on this collage a few months ago, and yet, many of the terms on here are even more acutely relevant today. Even as a child, I followed news information closely, whether in magazines, newspapers or online. From those sources, I often bring applicable information to patient encounters. It is from these materials that I collected my “illness script concepts”. The concepts and images on here represent what I see in myself as a medical student.
I have pride today and always, but especially so during the month of June, when I get to celebrate with my wife and with LGBTQ+ patients in clinic and the hospital. The word choice, glaring at me, a day after Roe was overturned. But I also see strength and unbreakable, two of the things that have gotten me to where I am today, even after a year when I experienced the loss of my brother and becoming sick from COVID-19. On there is progress, although progress that sometimes feels like 2 steps forward and 1 step back, moving forward, nonetheless. Resolute, even in the face of adversity. I’m proud of the illness script I would be. It’s flawed and imperfect, with some of the collage pieces slanted and not perfectly aligned, but it’s human and it’s trying its best. Just like me.
