#bodyhorror — Public Fediverse posts

Friendly reminder that Videodome is currently streaming on Prime Video!

(Original drawings by me)

#Videodrome #HorrorSky #FilmReccomendation #FilmSky #ArtSky #SpookySeason #BodyHorror #Art

2026-6-3 Post-Cholecystectomy Referred Pain

Learn about referred pain, it can save your life.

CLAYFACE (2026) ~ DC’s Boldest Body-Horror Transformation Yet https://popgeeks.com/clayface-2026-dcs-boldest-body-horror-transformation-yet/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=mastodon #Clayface #DCComics #HorrorMovies #SciFiThriller #BodyHorror

they goopy with it... #dandysworld #roblox #cleancanvas #horror #horrorart #bodyhorror #monochrome #ink #blackandwhite #teratophilia #monsterfucking #lesbian #yuri #toxicyuri

I just think that people should get a little weird with the way they hang out in the Puzzle is all.

It's a slight accompaniment to a fic I wrote earlier last year but not in any direct way. I just really want them to harmonize is all :3 :3

2026_2_16 “Botox for Migraine” Injection Set #2, and 5 Hour Drive to/from Appt

https://www.illmarks.com/2026_2_16-botox-for-migraine-injection-set-2-and-5-hour-drive-to-from-appt/

#2 #art #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #bodyart #bodymapping #chronicIllness #chronicIllness #chronicmigraine #disability #disabilityart #DisabledArtist #eds #healthcare #heds #longCovid #longcovid #mcas #medart #medical #medicalArt #migraine #MillionsMissing #neurology #POTS #pwLC #pwme #queer #QueerArt #QueerArtist #SciArt #SciComms #trans #transArt #TransPride

Symptom: Social Security Disability Rejection

61% of Social Security applicants are denied after their first application. I am now on the second appeal, when 49% of remaining applicants are approved, and have hired a lawyer (disability lawyers are only paid if they win your case).

I set a new goal on ko-fi, in order to get more illmarks pieces into the world. The fundraising would cover framing two Med Art Advocacy pieces, and submission fees + professional scanning for the Mütter Medical Museum, a Senior Living Center, a Health Care Center & 3 other shows.

If you are able to comfortably, please buy me a ko-fi. We’re 1/3 of the way to the goal!

https://www.illmarks.com/symptom-social-security-disability-rejection/

#artmuseum #BetterFutures #bodyHorror #chronicIllness #chronicIllness #chronicPain #crowdfund #disability #disabilityart #disabilityJustice #FederalGovernment #kofi #longcovid #medicalArt #MillionsMissing #pwLC #pwme #redesignSystems #socialSecurity #SocialSecurityReform #SSI #systemsFailing #TransformativeFutures #UniversalBasicIncome #US #usa #ushealthcare

Sequoia Sempervirens can sometimes survive harms like wildfires and keep growing

https://www.illmarks.com/sequoia-sempervirens-can-sometimes-survive-harms-like-wildfires-and-keep-growing/

#art #artwork #bodies #bodyHorror #bodyart #bodyhorror #bodymapping #care #chronicIllness #climateArt #disability #fire #fireArt #fountainpen #healing #health #human #ink #inkart #interactive #light #lighting #medart #metallic #MillionsMissing #penfount #SciArt #shimmer #SymptomMapping #wildfire

2026-1-7 Worst POTS day ever

https://www.illmarks.com/2026-1-7-worst-pots-day-ever/

#anatomy #art #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #bodyhorror #cfs #chronicIllness #CovidIsntOver #Dysautonomia #FediArt #illustration #ink #longCovid #longcovid #mastoart #me #mecfs #medart #medicalArt #MillionsMissing #Patient #PatientLed #POTS #potsie #publicHealth #pwLC #pwme #SciArt #SciComms

Symptom: Neurogenic Inflammation and POTS Blood Pooling

https://www.illmarks.com/symptom-neurogenic-inflammation-and-pots-blood-pooling/

#art #autonomicDysfunction #AutonomicFailure #autonomicNervousSystem #bloodpooling #BloodPressure #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #bodyart #bodyhorror #cardiology #chronicIllness #dinet #dystautonomia #hypotension #longCovid #medart #medicalArt #medicalart #MillionsMissing #neurogenicInflammation #neurogenicInflammation #neurology #orthostaticHypotension #orthostaticIntolerance #posturalOrthostaticTachycardiaSyndrome #POTS #potsie #pwLC #pwme #SciArt #SciComms #SymptomMap #SymptomArt #SymptomMap #tinitus #tinnitus

Symptom: Assigned Female At Birth

https://www.illmarks.com/symptom-assigned-female-at-birth/

#acog #afab #art #AssignedFemaleAtBirth #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #bodyart #bodydysphoria #bodyhorror #chronicIllness #dysphoria #Dysphoric #genderAffirmingCare #GenderAffirmingHealthcare #gyn #gynecology #healthcare #healthcareArt #invasive #longcovid #marginalizedGenders #mastcellactivationsyndrome #mcas #medart #medical #medicalArt #nonbinary #obGyn #OBGYN #pwLC #pwme #reproductiveRights #SciArt #SoTiredOfGoingToTheWomensClinic #trans #TransInclusiveHealthcare #TransRights #TransRightsAreHumanRights

Shaving: A Greenland Diaries Flash Fiction

Nigel couldn’t believe his beard had gotten this long.

It was down to his chest, tangled and frizzy. It was black, but almost brown at its feathery edges. He could hear his father yelling at him to trim it, his high, almost husky voice echoing in his head. His father was ex military. He loved the clean shaven look and forced Nigel to follow that hairless motif, even though Nigel hadn’t picked up a weapon until the Drum started. Now, he always had one with him. The ravaged green world demanded it, even with the Drum destroyed and the Unnamed no longer hunting him at night.

Nigel wondered if his father was still alive in the nursing home in Saint Louis Park. He had barely been alive before the Drum. It wouldn’t make any sense for him to be spared.

Nigel had been lucky to hide in his Golden Valley home for most of the apocalypse. He had left for a few weeks to join survivors fighting an Unnamed by a lake that kept attacking them. It had been a hard fought battle. Only Nigel and a few others survived. None of them had the appetite for further confrontations with the Unnamed, and they all retreated to their former hiding spots. Those had been the last people he’d spoken to, except for a band of soldiers passing through who told him the Drum was destroyed, and the Unnamed were nonviolent unless attacked.

Nigel felt his dark, reflectionless face. His features were gaunt, weathered by a lack of nutritious food. His cheeks were flat, his nose large, his forehead dry. His lips were cracked and bloody in places. The weather had been fine. It was the fear eroding his flesh. The constant worry of the Unnamed returning, or a crazed Reanimated storming through the neighborhood.

Slowly, above his white bathroom sink, he began to trim his beard. There was no electricity for his razor, so he resorted to a pair of orange handled scissors he kept in his office for trimming documents. They were sharp, but loud as they crushed the fibers between its blades. In minutes, most of his beard was reduced to a prickly edge beneath his fingers. He sighed.

“I guess it’s time. They said it was safe.”

Ahead of him hung a wool blanket, yellow and brown, duct taped to the wall in miscellaneous streaks of silver adhesive. It dangled just above the sink.

It blocked the mirror.

He’d put it up during the first week, when he noticed the shadows watching him. Now, with the Drum destroyed, survivors passing through told him mirrors and reflections were back to normal. They no longer held phantoms.

He slowly reached for the fabric, then stopped.

“I can’t do it.”

He walked out of the bathroom with a shrug.

“I can’t believe it’s okay.”

I really enjoy writing about these quieter moments in the Greenland Diaries, where characters are learning to live again after a horrifying ordeal that shook the foundations of humanity. These bits of flash fiction give me ample opportunity for it. You can learn more about the mainline series right here. Thank you for reading!

#author #blogging #bodyHorror #books #cosmicHorror #darkFantasy #darkFiction #decay #fantasy #fiction #flashFiction #grief #hauntedLandscapes #horror #horrorWriting #identity #isolation #liminalSpaces #machines #memory #monsters #obsession #patrickWMarsh #poeticProse #prosePoetry #psychologicalHorror #shortStories #speculativeFiction #survival #teraryHorror #theGreenlandDiaries #transformation #trauma #weirdFiction #writing

Shaving: A Greenland Diaries Flash Fiction

Nigel couldn’t believe his beard had gotten this long.

It was down to his chest, tangled and frizzy. It was black, but almost brown at its feathery edges. He could hear his father yelling at him to trim it, his high, almost husky voice echoing in his head. His father was ex military. He loved the clean shaven look and forced Nigel to follow that hairless motif, even though Nigel hadn’t picked up a weapon until the Drum started. Now, he always had one with him. The ravaged green world demanded it, even with the Drum destroyed and the Unnamed no longer hunting him at night.

Nigel wondered if his father was still alive in the nursing home in Saint Louis Park. He had barely been alive before the Drum. It wouldn’t make any sense for him to be spared.

Nigel had been lucky to hide in his Golden Valley home for most of the apocalypse. He had left for a few weeks to join survivors fighting an Unnamed by a lake that kept attacking them. It had been a hard fought battle. Only Nigel and a few others survived. None of them had the appetite for further confrontations with the Unnamed, and they all retreated to their former hiding spots. Those had been the last people he’d spoken to, except for a band of soldiers passing through who told him the Drum was destroyed, and the Unnamed were nonviolent unless attacked.

Nigel felt his dark, reflectionless face. His features were gaunt, weathered by a lack of nutritious food. His cheeks were flat, his nose large, his forehead dry. His lips were cracked and bloody in places. The weather had been fine. It was the fear eroding his flesh. The constant worry of the Unnamed returning, or a crazed Reanimated storming through the neighborhood.

Slowly, above his white bathroom sink, he began to trim his beard. There was no electricity for his razor, so he resorted to a pair of orange handled scissors he kept in his office for trimming documents. They were sharp, but loud as they crushed the fibers between its blades. In minutes, most of his beard was reduced to a prickly edge beneath his fingers. He sighed.

“I guess it’s time. They said it was safe.”

Ahead of him hung a wool blanket, yellow and brown, duct taped to the wall in miscellaneous streaks of silver adhesive. It dangled just above the sink.

It blocked the mirror.

He’d put it up during the first week, when he noticed the shadows watching him. Now, with the Drum destroyed, survivors passing through told him mirrors and reflections were back to normal. They no longer held phantoms.

He slowly reached for the fabric, then stopped.

“I can’t do it.”

He walked out of the bathroom with a shrug.

“I can’t believe it’s okay.”

I really enjoy writing about these quieter moments in the Greenland Diaries, where characters are learning to live again after a horrifying ordeal that shook the foundations of humanity. These bits of flash fiction give me ample opportunity for it. You can learn more about the mainline series right here. Thank you for reading!

#author #blogging #bodyHorror #books #cosmicHorror #darkFantasy #darkFiction #decay #fantasy #fiction #flashFiction #grief #hauntedLandscapes #horror #horrorWriting #identity #isolation #liminalSpaces #machines #memory #monsters #obsession #patrickWMarsh #poeticProse #prosePoetry #psychologicalHorror #shortStories #speculativeFiction #survival #teraryHorror #theGreenlandDiaries #transformation #trauma #weirdFiction #writing

Shaving: A Greenland Diaries Flash Fiction

Nigel couldn’t believe his beard had gotten this long.

It was down to his chest, tangled and frizzy. It was black, but almost brown at its feathery edges. He could hear his father yelling at him to trim it, his high, almost husky voice echoing in his head. His father was ex military. He loved the clean shaven look and forced Nigel to follow that hairless motif, even though Nigel hadn’t picked up a weapon until the Drum started. Now, he always had one with him. The ravaged green world demanded it, even with the Drum destroyed and the Unnamed no longer hunting him at night.

Nigel wondered if his father was still alive in the nursing home in Saint Louis Park. He had barely been alive before the Drum. It wouldn’t make any sense for him to be spared.

Nigel had been lucky to hide in his Golden Valley home for most of the apocalypse. He had left for a few weeks to join survivors fighting an Unnamed by a lake that kept attacking them. It had been a hard fought battle. Only Nigel and a few others survived. None of them had the appetite for further confrontations with the Unnamed, and they all retreated to their former hiding spots. Those had been the last people he’d spoken to, except for a band of soldiers passing through who told him the Drum was destroyed, and the Unnamed were nonviolent unless attacked.

Nigel felt his dark, reflectionless face. His features were gaunt, weathered by a lack of nutritious food. His cheeks were flat, his nose large, his forehead dry. His lips were cracked and bloody in places. The weather had been fine. It was the fear eroding his flesh. The constant worry of the Unnamed returning, or a crazed Reanimated storming through the neighborhood.

Slowly, above his white bathroom sink, he began to trim his beard. There was no electricity for his razor, so he resorted to a pair of orange handled scissors he kept in his office for trimming documents. They were sharp, but loud as they crushed the fibers between its blades. In minutes, most of his beard was reduced to a prickly edge beneath his fingers. He sighed.

“I guess it’s time. They said it was safe.”

Ahead of him hung a wool blanket, yellow and brown, duct taped to the wall in miscellaneous streaks of silver adhesive. It dangled just above the sink.

It blocked the mirror.

He’d put it up during the first week, when he noticed the shadows watching him. Now, with the Drum destroyed, survivors passing through told him mirrors and reflections were back to normal. They no longer held phantoms.

He slowly reached for the fabric, then stopped.

“I can’t do it.”

He walked out of the bathroom with a shrug.

“I can’t believe it’s okay.”

I really enjoy writing about these quieter moments in the Greenland Diaries, where characters are learning to live again after a horrifying ordeal that shook the foundations of humanity. These bits of flash fiction give me ample opportunity for it. You can learn more about the mainline series right here. Thank you for reading!

#author #blogging #bodyHorror #books #cosmicHorror #darkFantasy #darkFiction #decay #fantasy #fiction #flashFiction #grief #hauntedLandscapes #horror #horrorWriting #identity #isolation #liminalSpaces #machines #memory #monsters #obsession #patrickWMarsh #poeticProse #prosePoetry #psychologicalHorror #shortStories #speculativeFiction #survival #teraryHorror #theGreenlandDiaries #transformation #trauma #weirdFiction #writing

Shaving: A Greenland Diaries Flash Fiction

Nigel couldn’t believe his beard had gotten this long.

It was down to his chest, tangled and frizzy. It was black, but almost brown at its feathery edges. He could hear his father yelling at him to trim it, his high, almost husky voice echoing in his head. His father was ex military. He loved the clean shaven look and forced Nigel to follow that hairless motif, even though Nigel hadn’t picked up a weapon until the Drum started. Now, he always had one with him. The ravaged green world demanded it, even with the Drum destroyed and the Unnamed no longer hunting him at night.

Nigel wondered if his father was still alive in the nursing home in Saint Louis Park. He had barely been alive before the Drum. It wouldn’t make any sense for him to be spared.

Nigel had been lucky to hide in his Golden Valley home for most of the apocalypse. He had left for a few weeks to join survivors fighting an Unnamed by a lake that kept attacking them. It had been a hard fought battle. Only Nigel and a few others survived. None of them had the appetite for further confrontations with the Unnamed, and they all retreated to their former hiding spots. Those had been the last people he’d spoken to, except for a band of soldiers passing through who told him the Drum was destroyed, and the Unnamed were nonviolent unless attacked.

Nigel felt his dark, reflectionless face. His features were gaunt, weathered by a lack of nutritious food. His cheeks were flat, his nose large, his forehead dry. His lips were cracked and bloody in places. The weather had been fine. It was the fear eroding his flesh. The constant worry of the Unnamed returning, or a crazed Reanimated storming through the neighborhood.

Slowly, above his white bathroom sink, he began to trim his beard. There was no electricity for his razor, so he resorted to a pair of orange handled scissors he kept in his office for trimming documents. They were sharp, but loud as they crushed the fibers between its blades. In minutes, most of his beard was reduced to a prickly edge beneath his fingers. He sighed.

“I guess it’s time. They said it was safe.”

Ahead of him hung a wool blanket, yellow and brown, duct taped to the wall in miscellaneous streaks of silver adhesive. It dangled just above the sink.

It blocked the mirror.

He’d put it up during the first week, when he noticed the shadows watching him. Now, with the Drum destroyed, survivors passing through told him mirrors and reflections were back to normal. They no longer held phantoms.

He slowly reached for the fabric, then stopped.

“I can’t do it.”

He walked out of the bathroom with a shrug.

“I can’t believe it’s okay.”

I really enjoy writing about these quieter moments in the Greenland Diaries, where characters are learning to live again after a horrifying ordeal that shook the foundations of humanity. These bits of flash fiction give me ample opportunity for it. You can learn more about the mainline series right here. Thank you for reading!

#author #blogging #bodyHorror #books #cosmicHorror #darkFantasy #darkFiction #decay #fantasy #fiction #flashFiction #grief #hauntedLandscapes #horror #horrorWriting #identity #isolation #liminalSpaces #machines #memory #monsters #obsession #patrickWMarsh #poeticProse #prosePoetry #psychologicalHorror #shortStories #speculativeFiction #survival #teraryHorror #theGreenlandDiaries #transformation #trauma #weirdFiction #writing

Shaving: A Greenland Diaries Flash Fiction

Nigel couldn’t believe his beard had gotten this long.

It was down to his chest, tangled and frizzy. It was black, but almost brown at its feathery edges. He could hear his father yelling at him to trim it, his high, almost husky voice echoing in his head. His father was ex military. He loved the clean shaven look and forced Nigel to follow that hairless motif, even though Nigel hadn’t picked up a weapon until the Drum started. Now, he always had one with him. The ravaged green world demanded it, even with the Drum destroyed and the Unnamed no longer hunting him at night.

Nigel wondered if his father was still alive in the nursing home in Saint Louis Park. He had barely been alive before the Drum. It wouldn’t make any sense for him to be spared.

Nigel had been lucky to hide in his Golden Valley home for most of the apocalypse. He had left for a few weeks to join survivors fighting an Unnamed by a lake that kept attacking them. It had been a hard fought battle. Only Nigel and a few others survived. None of them had the appetite for further confrontations with the Unnamed, and they all retreated to their former hiding spots. Those had been the last people he’d spoken to, except for a band of soldiers passing through who told him the Drum was destroyed, and the Unnamed were nonviolent unless attacked.

Nigel felt his dark, reflectionless face. His features were gaunt, weathered by a lack of nutritious food. His cheeks were flat, his nose large, his forehead dry. His lips were cracked and bloody in places. The weather had been fine. It was the fear eroding his flesh. The constant worry of the Unnamed returning, or a crazed Reanimated storming through the neighborhood.

Slowly, above his white bathroom sink, he began to trim his beard. There was no electricity for his razor, so he resorted to a pair of orange handled scissors he kept in his office for trimming documents. They were sharp, but loud as they crushed the fibers between its blades. In minutes, most of his beard was reduced to a prickly edge beneath his fingers. He sighed.

“I guess it’s time. They said it was safe.”

Ahead of him hung a wool blanket, yellow and brown, duct taped to the wall in miscellaneous streaks of silver adhesive. It dangled just above the sink.

It blocked the mirror.

He’d put it up during the first week, when he noticed the shadows watching him. Now, with the Drum destroyed, survivors passing through told him mirrors and reflections were back to normal. They no longer held phantoms.

He slowly reached for the fabric, then stopped.

“I can’t do it.”

He walked out of the bathroom with a shrug.

“I can’t believe it’s okay.”

I really enjoy writing about these quieter moments in the Greenland Diaries, where characters are learning to live again after a horrifying ordeal that shook the foundations of humanity. These bits of flash fiction give me ample opportunity for it. You can learn more about the mainline series right here. Thank you for reading!

#author #blogging #bodyHorror #books #cosmicHorror #darkFantasy #darkFiction #decay #fantasy #fiction #flashFiction #grief #hauntedLandscapes #horror #horrorWriting #identity #isolation #liminalSpaces #machines #memory #monsters #obsession #patrickWMarsh #poeticProse #prosePoetry #psychologicalHorror #shortStories #speculativeFiction #survival #teraryHorror #theGreenlandDiaries #transformation #trauma #weirdFiction #writing

Symptom: Mast Cell Itching

https://www.illmarks.com/symptom-mast-cell-itching/

#allergicreactions #Allergies #allergy #art #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #buildingSafety #chonicillness #chronicIllness #claws #eds #ehlersdanlossyndrome #environmentalIllness #environmentalillness #fingers #formaldehyde #heds #hypermobile #hypermobility #hypermobilityspectrumdisorder #immunology #itched #itching #longCovid #longcovid #mastCell #mastCellActivationSyndrome #mastcell #mastcellactivationsyndrome #mastcelldisease #mastocytosis #mcas #medicalArt #MillionsMissing #nails #POTS #prop65 #publicHealth #publicHealth #pwLC #pwme #scratched #scratching #scratchy #severeallergy #vocs

2025-11-17 I fell and severely injured myself on the am before 31 migraine medication injections

https://www.illmarks.com/2025-11-17-i-fell-and-severely-injured-myself-on-the-am-before-31-migraine-medication-injections/

#art #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #chronicIllness #chronicMigraine #chronicmigraine #heds #longCovid #longcovid #medicalArt #migraine #MillionsMissing #mobilityAid #mobilityaid #neurology #orthopedics #pwLC #pwme

Symptom: POTS Blood Pooling (+ Migraine) & Coat Hanger Pain

https://www.illmarks.com/symptom-pots-blood-pooling-coat-hanger-pain/

#art #bloodPooling #bloodpooling #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #bodymapping #cardiology #chronicIllness #chronicIllness #coatHangerPain #coathangerpain #Dysautonomia #headache #longCovid #longcovid #maskUp #mecfs #medArt #medart #medical #medicalArt #medicine #migraine #MillionsMissing #neurology #posturalOrthostaticTachycardiaSyndrome #POTS #pwLC #pwme #SaltingTheVibes #SciArt

2025-8-22 Almost a week out of the house stopped me from getting worse, but healing is SO SLOW

The MCAS Environmental Exposure Nightmare Continues

https://www.illmarks.com/2025-8-22-almost-a-week-out-of-the-house-stopped-me-from-getting-worse-but-healing-is-so-slow/

#art #autoimmune #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #chronicIllness #environmental #inktober #longCovid #longcovid #mastCell #mastCellActivationSyndrome #mastcell #mcas #medart #medicalArt #MillionsMissing #pwLC #pwme #SciArt

2025_8_19 The symptoms are coming from inside the house.

2026-3-9 edit: A previous version of this page held steps you can take during the acute infection to lower your risk of Long Covid, or lower the severity of how a reinfection will worsen your existing Long Covid.

Information on supporting a FULL recovery from SARS-CoV-2 is now more accessible on its own permalink page here, or from the top bar: Information > Got a Covid Infection?

https://www.illmarks.com/symptoms-are-coming-long-covid-prevention-tips/

#allergy #art #backToSchool #backtoschool #besafe #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #cdc #chronicIllness #covid #covidIsAirborne #covidIsNotOver #covid19 #covid19 #covidcompetent #CovidIsntOver #environmental #health #healthcare #longCovid #longcovid #maskUp #maskup #mastCell #mastCellActivationSyndrome #mastCellDisease #mastcell #mcas #medArt #medart #medblog #medicalArt #MillionsMissing #pwme #SaltingTheVibes #SaltingTheVibes #sarsCov2 #sars2 #sciArt #SciArt #WearAMask #WearARespirator

2025_8_18 I booked a hotel to try to identify/isolate variables. As soon as I walked in the hotel room, I felt my head swell.

https://www.illmarks.com/2025_8_18-i-booked-a-hotel-to-try-to-identify-isolate-variables-as-soon-as-i-walked-in-the-hotel-room-i-felt-my-head-swell/

#art #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #chronicIllness #chronicMigraine #chronicPain #chronicmigraine #covidIsNotOver #CovidIsntOver #longCovid #longcovid #mastCell #mastCellActivationSyndrome #mastCellDisease #mcas #meCfs #mecfs #medArt #medart #medblog #medicalArt #migraine #MillionsMissing #neurology #POTS #pwLC #pwme

2025_8_14 I feel better out of the house, which is incongruous with ME/CFS Long Covid.

https://www.illmarks.com/2025_8_14-i-feel-better-out-of-the-house-which-is-incongruous-with-me-cfs-long-covid/

#art #autoimmune #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #cfs #chronicIllness #longCovid #longcovid #mastCell #mastCellActivationSyndrome #mastCellDisease #mcas #me #meCfs #mecfs #medArt #medart #medicalArt #medicine #migraine #MillionsMissing #neurology #pwLC #pwme #rheumatology

Symptom: MCAS Brain Fog

This post comes to you with a reminder that while “Brain Fog,” is an apt descriptor, it should not be used to undermine the severity of the condition.

“These are fairly identical functional symptoms that people with Long COVID have, to the symptoms that people within a traumatic brain injury have,” says Dr James C Jackson, psychologist specializing on cognitive rehabilitation and Long Covid.

“Strictly speaking, this is not a traumatic brain injury (TBI) because there’s no external trauma. Which is why if we go down deep, this will be not a TBI that people experience. It would be something called an ABI, the lesser-known cousin of a TBI. Acquired Brain Injuries (ABI) happen often due to internal processes, not external medical processes, inflammation, the 101 other mechanisms that drive these injuries. And when we look at the brains of some Long COVID patients, we see brain damage on MRIs, we see indicators that are not dissimilar from those of people with mild cognitive impairment or a mild TBI.“

Dr Jackson is the author of Clearing the Fog: a book on navigating life with the cognitive and mental health impairments that often accompany Long Covid.

Quotes from Dr Jackson’s appearance on the Me Myself & TBI podcast, edited for clarity & brevity.

https://www.illmarks.com/symptom-mcas-brain-fog/

#abi #allergy #art #autoimmune #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #brainFog #brainfog #chemicallySensitive #chronicIllness #cognitive #cognitiveImpairment #cognitiveImpairments #longCovid #longcovid #mastCell #mastcell #medArt #medart #medical #medicalArt #MillionsMissing #neuro #neurology #neuropsych #psychiatry #Psychology #pwLC #pwme #tbi

2025-8-17 The water isn’t the whole picture… but what is?

https://www.illmarks.com/2025-8-17-the-water-isnt-the-whole-picture-but-what-is/

#allergen #allergy #art #autoimmune #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #chronicIllness #chronicPain #chronicIllness #chronicPain #dermatology #longCovid #longcovid #mastCell #mcas #meCfs #mecfs #medart #medical #medicalArt #medicine #migraine #MillionsMissing #pwLC #pwme #rash #rheumatology #SciArt #sciartseptember #water

2025-8-11 My migraines are triggered by drinking water

https://www.illmarks.com/2025-8-11-my-migraines-are-triggered-by-drinking-water/

#art #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #chronicIllness #chronicMigraine #chronicPain #disability #disabled #longCovid #longcovid #mastcell #mcas #medBlog #medart #medicalArt #medicalBlog #migraine #MillionsMissing #neurology #pwLC #pwme #sciBlog #SciArt

2025-8-9 I almost went in to anaphylaxis from drinking water.

https://www.illmarks.com/2025-8-9-i-almost-went-in-to-anaphylaxis-from-drinking-water/

#allergy #art #autoimmune #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #chronicIllness #immune #immunology #longCovid #longcovid #mastCell #mastcell #mcas #medArt #medBlog #medart #medicalArt #MillionsMissing #pwLC #pwme #sciArt #sciBlog #SciArt

2025-8-9 Is this MCAS anaphylaxis, anxiety, or anaphylaxis from anxiety?

I almost didn’t want to share this one, because I’m in a bit of a nervous state, and I was worried about the people who think people with Long Covid are psychological malingerers, etc. When I had to leave work, and filed for US Social Security Disability, I kept my Generalized Anxiety Disorder out of my initial application, afraid of getting the dreaded “just anxiety,” dismissal that many complex chronic illness kin are familiar with. (I was later told this was a bad move, and to definitely include all mental health and neurodivergence things, which I did for the ongoing process.)

Even as I’m having less anaphylaxis risk, it’s taking time to recover psychologically. I told my therapist how I felt like I backslid over a decade in mental health work overnight from the first recent anaphylaxis episode. She kindly said that while I might feel as scared and threatened as I often did back then, that the trigger was different. I was not feeling that anxious about an email, I was feeling that way about a literal life and death situation, one which I still don’t fully understand the triggers of.

A decade ago, de-stigmatizing mental healthcare was really important to me too. Now, I’m especially aware of how much these issues intersect, so heck yeah, publishing the medical art about anxiety.

Lastly, I wanted to include few examples of the ways in which these issues intersect. These are absolutely the tip of the iceberg.

• Mast Cell Activation Snydrome (often MCAS for space, in my art) can trigger so, so many pyschological symptoms. Mast Attack has a great overview of the topic, and while I haven’t been able to read the study fully because of the severe brain fog, Prevalence and treatment response of neuropsychiatric disorders in mast cell activation syndrome caught my eye.

• Anaphylaxis, or near anaphylaxis, has many symptoms in common with anxiety, from chest tightness to clammy skin, and “a feeling of impending doom”. While MCAS is not allergies, All Things Allergies has an easy intro to anxiety & anaphylaxis, and here’s a study The impact of anaphylaxis on the quality of life and mental health of adults.

• Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome co-occurs with many mental health issues, and I really appreciate how this article lists suspected mechanisms, misattributions, and related factors.

• Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome, or POTS, is a form of autonomic dysfuntction (when things your body normally does automatically stop behaving normally), and is a part of my Long Covid. It involves a high heart rate, and often symptoms like room spinning or lightheadedness, trembling or shaking, shortness of breath, and poor bloodflow. POTS is often misdiagnosed as anxiety, and The Disabled Ginger wrote about it here.

Theories that diseases are caused by mental states and can be cured by will power are always an index of how much is not understood about the physical terrain of a disease.

Moreover, there is a peculiarly modern predilection for psychological explanations of a disease, as of everything else. Psychologizing seems to provide control over the experiences and events (like grave illnesses) over which people have in fact little or no control. Psychological understanding undermines the ‘reality’ of a disease. That reality has to be explained.

Susan Sontag, illness as metaphor (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1977), p. 55.

p.s. mental health is physical health and physical health is mental health. you got a literal brain in your body and all of your body is involved in everything that you do. please take care of yourselves and each other. <3

https://www.illmarks.com/2025-8-9-is-this-mcas-anaphylaxis/

#allergy #anaphylaxis #anxiety #art #autoimmune #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #chronicIllness #gad #generalizedAnxiety #immune #longCovid #longcovid #mastCell #mastCellActivationSyndrome #mastCellDisease #mastcell #mcas #medart #medblog #medicalArt #medwriting #mentalHealth #MillionsMissing #pwLC #pwme #SciArt #sciblog #sciwriting #symptom

2025-7-30 I woke up to the migraine spreading. What is it and how do I stop it?!

https://www.illmarks.com/2025-7-30-i-woke-up-to-the-migraine-spreading-what-is-it-and-how-do-i-stop-it/

#art #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #chronicIllness #chronicPain #longCovid #longcovid #mastCell #mcas #medart #medicalArt #migraine #MillionsMissing #pwLC #pwme #SciArt

2025-7-28 My migraines ignore other negative symptom patterns, and healing patterns.

https://www.illmarks.com/2025-7-28-my-migraines-ignore-other-negative-symptom-patterns-and-healing-patterns/

#art #aura #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #chronicIllness #chronicMigraine #chronicPain #headache #healing #longCovid #longcovid #medart #medicalArt #migraine #MillionsMissing #neuro #neurology #pwLC #pwme #SciArt

Symptoms: Photosensitivity and Venous Insufficiency

https://www.illmarks.com/symptom-photosensitivity-and-venous-insufficiency/

#art #autoimmune #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #cardiology #chronicIllness #immunocompromised #longCovid #longcovid #medart #medicalArt #MillionsMissing #pwLC #pwme #rheumatology #SciArt

Symptom: MCAS Bucket Explosion
Triggers Include: Drinking Water, Brushing Teeth, Being Inside

Seattle area folks who can attend IRL events:
I will be teaching a respirator-required art workshop related to this project, Bookmarks on the Body, at QTBIPOC Arts Space The Fishbowl on August 27, 6-9pm. I would love to see you there.

While this is not a hybrid event, I am creating virtual-only and disability-focused workshops! I will be using what I learn from this first workshop to improve the format, structure, and content.

If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to me illmarks @ nyx mir dot com

https://www.illmarks.com/symptom-mcas-bucket-explosion/

#allergy #art #autoimmune #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #chronicIllness #chronicPain #longCovid #longcovid #mastCell #mastCellActivationSyndrome #mastcell #mcas #medart #medicalArt #migraine #MillionsMissing #pwLC #pwme #SciArt #seatac #seattle

Migraine Triggers:
– Eating
– Sitting or Standing
– Sleeping

https://www.illmarks.com/symptom-migraine-triggers/

#art #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #chronic #chronicIllness #chronicPain #headache #longCovid #longcovid #mcas #mecfs #medart #medical #medicalArt #migraine #MillionsMissing #neuro #neurology #neuropsych #pain #POTS #pwLC #pwme

2025-6-22 my new medication has been recharging, but I also have big joint pain.

https://www.illmarks.com/2025-6-22-my-new-medication-has-been-recharging-but-i-also-have-big-joint-pain/

#bodyHorror #chronicIllness #longCovid #longcovid #mcas #mecfs #medArt #medart #medicalArt #MillionsMissing #POTS #pwLC #pwme #sciArt #SciArt

2025_6_19 Arthralgia and post-exertional aches

https://www.illmarks.com/025_6_19-arthralgia-and-post-exertional-aches/

#arthralgia #bodyHorror #chronicIllness #chronicPain #chronicIllness #chronicPain #headache #longCovid #longcovid #medart #medicalArt #migraine #MillionsMissing #pwLC #pwme #SciArt

2025-2-12 Starting imatinib for resistant mast cell symptoms.

https://www.illmarks.com/2025-2-12-starting-imatinib-for-resistant-mast-cell-symptoms/

#art #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #chemo #chronicIllness #chronicIllnessArt #disabilityArt #gleevec #glivec #imatinib #invisibleDisabilities #invisibleIllness #invisibleIllnesses #longCovid #longcovid #mastCell #mastCellActivationSyndrome #mastCellDisease #mastcell #mastocytosis #meCfs #mecfs #medart #medicalArt #MillionsMissing #nausea #pwLC #pwme #SciArt #scienceArt #tki

Symptom: Icicle Stabbing Spondylitis

https://www.illmarks.com/symptom-icicle-stabbing-spondylitis/

#anatomical #anatomy #anatomyArt #bodyHorror #bodyMapping #chronicIllness #chronicPain #chronicillnesss #chronicPain #climateArt #climateChange #disabilityArt #disabilityart #longcovid #medicalArt #MillionsMissing #pwLC #pwme

Symptom: Derealization

https://www.illmarks.com/symptom-derealization-2/

#bodyHorror #bodyMapping #chronicIllness #derealization #disabilityArt #dissociation #longCovid #longcovid #medicalArt #mentalHealth #MillionsMissing #pwLC #pwme

2025-1-22: Fire & Ice

https://www.illmarks.com/025-1-22-fire-ice/

#bodyHorror #chronicIllness #chronicPain #disabilityArt #Dysautonomia #GI #GIpain #ibs #longCovid #longcovid #mcas #mecfs #medart #medicalArt #MillionsMissing #POTS #pwLC #pwme #SciArt #temperaturedysregulatiion

Symptom: Coat Hanger Pain

I only learned about this term very recently, from yumpsuit on the Fediverse. Thank you so much for letting me know about it!

I am almost disproportionately thankful to have a handy description for letting people know what I’m feeling, as well as how to look for ways to try to mitigate the pain. Reading about Coat Hanger Pain resonated deeply, in a way similar to how I often feel when I get a diagnosis: a feeling of relief, connection, community, and hope.

Many people who have not been chronically ill see a diagnosis as a negative. Indeed, many disabled people are never told their diagnoses, and are never told they are disabled. This needs to change, because as Granite and Sunlight explained:

Many people are disabled for a long time before they get a diagnosis which explains what is happening to them, and there is a resistance in the medical profession to giving long-term diagnoses, especially for young people and for women with chronic conditions which lack good treatment options, because of an outdated belief that labels are limiting and they don’t want people to ‘see themselves as disabled’. The fact they are already disabled, already struggling, is why disability justice advocates are trying to help medical professionals change their approach to this. Most people just want answers and context for what is happening to them – not having a name for it doesn’t mean it isn’t affecting their lives. Diagnosis gives people access to context, support and community who can help a person manage the condition better, but these are not built into the medical response to disability. Despite these delays, the person is still disabled all that time, and still needs access to the support and adaptations which can help them live good lives managing their conditions.

For more information about this, I recommend Brianne of No End In Sight’s TEDx Talk, Disease Begins Before Diagnosis.

https://www.illmarks.com/symptom-coat-hanger-pain/

#art #bodyHorror #chronicIllness #chronicPain #coatHangerPain #coathangerpain #disabilityArt #disabilityJustice #Dysautonomia #eds #heds #longCovid #longcovid #medicalArt #MillionsMissing #neis #NEISvoid #POTS #pwLC #pwme #spoonie

2024_10_4

https://www.illmarks.com/2024_10_4-aching-beneath-my-shoulder-blades/

#advocacyArt #bodyHorror #chronicIllness #disabilityArt #disabled #longCovid #medicalArt #MillionsMissing #postViralIllness #pwLC #pwme

Cinelio: Tetsuo: the Iron Man (1989) de Shinya Tsukamoto (proyección + debate)

https://vagancio.partidopirata.com.ar/event/cinelio-tetsuo-the-iron-man-1989-de-shinya-tsukamoto-proyeccion-debate

2024_9_28 Unsure if sore throat is caused by new digetive supplements, or?

https://www.illmarks.com/2024_9_28-sore-throat/

#art #bodyHorror #chronicIllness #chronicIllnessArt #disabilityArt #inkArt #longCovid #medicalArt #MillionsMissing #mixedMediaArt #pencilArt #pwLC #pwme

Symptom: Shame
for not living up to my past standards and abilities

https://www.illmarks.com/symptom-shame/

#art #bodyHorror #chronicIllness #disabilityArt #longCovid #longcovid #medicalArt #MillionsMissing #pwLC #pwme

New Blood Splattered Vlog!

This week The Horror Guru & Count Jackula review I Saw The TV Glow!

A surreal arthouse horror film filled with 90's nostalgia and a heartfelt trans allegory. From A24, no less!

https://youtu.be/_kN-qoODZZw

#A24 #ISawTheTVGlow #Horror #HorrorMovie #BodyHorror #Movie #MovieReview #HorrorMovieReview #MovieVlog #Vlog #YouTube #YouTuber #HorrorTube #HorrorTuber #HorrorGuru #CountJackula #BloodSplatteredVlog

A portrait of my Sabbat Tzimisce pack priest, Delta in their very extra clothes. Oil on Canvas.

Print available: https://bekandrew.artstation.com/store/art_posters/OQ4RM/delta-portrait

#queerartist #transartist #print #printforsale #myart #art #artstation #horror #bodyhorror #tzimisce #vtm #vampirethemasquerade #bones #halloween #vampire #sabbat #blood #oilpaint #traditionalart #painting #worldofdarkness #wod #ttrpg #ttrpgart #ttrpgcommunity #ttrpgillustration #ttrpgcharacter #illustration

New #BloodSplatteredVlog!

This week The Horror Guru & Count Jackula review the new #Shudder Original: #PERPETRATOR!

A surreal feminist body horror film about a teen girl trying to solve the mystery of who is kidnapping other teen girls at her school!

https://youtu.be/rvlqhcQEP3Y

#Horror #HorrorFilm #HorrorMovie #Arthouse #ArtFilm #Cinema #BodyHorror #Review #Vlog #MovieVlog #MovieReview #HorrrorMovieReview #HorrorReview #HorrorMovieVlog #YouTube #Horrortube #Horrortuber #Shudder #ShudderOriginal