"But you don't look sick." I’m Annette Leonard of https://www.annetteleonard.com find me on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/theannetteleonard Learning how to respond to, "but you don't look sick," without getting frustrated is a difficult thing. Maybe I don't -- and yet, I am. I often try to look fierce, because I don't feel good. Last week was Hidden Disabilities Awareness Week (Oct 15-21). Don't let the fact that we're a week late, stop you from disclosing. For those who are able-bodied, the only way to gain awareness is to learn from the experience of others. Often I shut myself down by thinking some version of, "they've heard it," "they're tired of hearing about it," "I don't want to complain," etc." We have a range of people in our lives from close to distant and there are a range of ways we might introduce this topic. Even folks with obvious disabilities also have hidden disabilities they might not talk about. For me, most of my close friends know that I'm living with chronic migraines, but they may not know the affects of this like: when I go to your house for dinner -- that low music you play for ambiance, erodes my ability to think, participate, and engage as I try to manage my pain. We are often discouraged from discussing our disabilities and illness because of adages like "if you don't have something nice to say..." Therefore, these awareness days offer us opportunities, if we chose to take them, to disclose our experiences in ways we might otherwise not. Watching two truckers signal each other with their lights recently made me think about hidden illness and disability. I wish we had covert ways of signaling one another so that we could notice each other out in the world. Knowing we are not alone relieves some of the burden. We have a deeply human desire to be understood and to be included. Telling others about my hidden disabilities allows others to do a better job of that. So the next time someone says "but you don't look sick," could this be an opportunity to disclose and invite someone to know you a bit better rather than leaving the interaction feeling diminished by the comment.