This post is for you.
If you are living with scleroderma — or loving someone who is — I want you to know something before anything else: you are not alone in this. Not in the uncertainty, not in the hard days, and not in the quiet moments when you wonder what your life is still capable of becoming.
I know those moments. I have lived them. And I wrote The Woman Behind the Image because I needed a place to put them — and because I believe stories like ours deserve to be told out loud.
What Scleroderma Taught Me
Scleroderma has a way of stripping things down to what matters. It taught me that time is not guaranteed, so intention matters. It taught me that the body and the creative spirit are not always in agreement — and that the spirit, more often than not, wins.
It also taught me that community is everything. The people who showed up, who understood without explanation, who simply sat with me in the difficulty — they are woven into this memoir and into this brand.
A Message to the Scleroderma Community
If you are newly diagnosed, I see you. The fear is real, and it is okay to feel it. But please know that a diagnosis is not the end of your story — it is often the beginning of the most honest, most courageous chapter you will ever write.
If you have been living with this for years, I see you too. The endurance it takes, day after day, is extraordinary. You may not always feel like it, but you are extraordinary.
And if you are a caregiver, a friend, a family member — thank you. Your presence matters more than you know.
Share Your Story
I would love to hear from you. If this memoir resonates, if you have your own story of creativity and resilience, please reach out. This community is stronger when we speak to each other.
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