I don't like "invisible illness" as a descriptor, tbh. invisibilized maybe… but it's not that there are no external presentations of symptoms. the framing makes it sound like the situation is purely perception-based or passive when it isn't.
our symptoms are regularly downplayed, dismissed, or even actively erased by others, so "invisible" doesn't really resonate with me.
it's also a heavily political term. conditions like POTS, MCAS, ME/CFS, and hEDS are often labeled "invisible," and interestingly, these are conditions that are frequently not taken seriously by the medical system.
other illnesses, like many forms of cancer, or asthma and heart disease, aren’t usually called invisible illnesses, even though the same logic could apply to them.
I understand that people may use whatever personal framework helps them explain their experiences, but the problem arises when the term becomes normalized in discourse without acknowledging the patterns it reflects.
and yes, words alone don't solve oppression, but the implications matter. language determines perception in a lot of ways.
