A piece entitled “Navigating the District with a Hidden Disability” written by Chronic Market founder April Thompson appears in the June 2023 issue of District Fray magazine, a local publication dedicated to DC culture and events. The piece details her challenges getting around the nation’s capital with ME/CFS, and interviews others with ME/CFS and other chronic illnesses about their struggles and suggestions as well.
“For nearly 20 years, I’ve suffered from ME/CFS, otherwise known as chronic fatigue syndrome, characterized by a systemic intolerance to exertion. I was in peak health and physical condition when ME/CFS hit — a multisport athlete who ran marathons at elite qualifying times, boxed competitively and climbed mountains all over the world. A mild viral bug I picked up while traveling morphed overnight into a condition that left me so weak I couldn’t walk around the block.
In many ways, I am lucky. Three out of four people with ME/CFS, which has no known treatment, are too ill to work due to severe physical and cognitive dysfunction. One in four are housebound or bedbound, some too ill to speak or read, or feed and bathe themselves,” April writes.
The piece, which also includes tips for locals and tourists navigating DC with mobility issues, can be found online to subscribers or on the newsstands (carried at local outlets such as Whole Foods).