Tips for Blogging with Chronic Illnesses

Today I thought I would share some tips for blogging with chronic illnesses because it has been so important in my life. People who have read my blog for a while will know how sharing about my life has helped my mental health so much. So, if you are considering it, these tips may help you.

Why I chose to blog

I first became sick in my early twenties; I was newly qualified as a nurse, and I had a life that I loved in Birmingham England. I was starting to gain confidence and find my footing; I certainly did not want to give up work and move back in with my parents.

Back then the internet was new, and I was excited by the idea of getting my thoughts out of my head and out into the world, so I didn’t have to think about them. I didn’t know about mindfulness being something I could practice all day then and so I just wanted to find something to help.

The site called LiveJournal was perfect for this and I loved writing out how my illness was, and what was going on in my head. Many of my friends followed me as well as people I didn’t know, and I found a great community there.

As time passed, and I learned more, I made my own website that I used in a similar way, but as blogging became more popular, I wanted to find a better and easier way to host my blog. I found out that most people used WordPress, and I started to use my social media to share out my posts.

In the following years since I started `Blooming Mindfulness`, I have improved so much, and I love the communities I am part of. I share my posts through Chronic Illness Bloggers and Fibro Blogger Directory which is a wonderful way to meet others who blog about their illnesses.

It has been the best decision I could have made, as I have shared and grown in my own chronic illness journey, I have been able to help others. And now I hope these tips for blogging with chronic illnesses will help others who might want to start.

It has been the best decision I could have made, as I have shared and grown in my own chronic illness journey, I have been able to help others. Share on X

Tips for blogging

• Be consistent – Working in time to write a blog post and to post and share it can be tiring and difficult. For me, it has always been Wednesday mornings, not sure why I picked it now as it was so long ago, but it works for me. You might need to write one day, post another, it doesn’t really matter so long as you get into a routine, and it doesn’t change. People like predictability and knowing your post will be out on a certain day. So, pick a day and then plan your week around how to get it out there.
• Utilise free resources – Posting a blog can be expensive, monthly hosting costs as well as paying for a URL you want is not cheap. But there are so many free resources that will help, like the free to share groups I mentioned earlier. I also use Canva, which is a free resource with tons of free templates to use for social media and in your blog post. It is also important to make sure you use copywrite free images and for this I use UnSplash a wonderful site with tons of images that can be used for free with credit to the artist.
• Make it accessible – Look around the chronic illness blogging space and you will see that we try what we can to make our blog posts accessible. This can include voice recordings of the post, colours and fonts to make it easy to read and image descriptions. This makes it harder when we are writing and putting out posts, but is so important when making content for people who are disabled.
• Same name everywhere – This is a big one and is so important, have the same name on all platforms, all through social media and the blog everything should match. This is so that people can find you on different platforms and you have brand consistency. So, also make your blog name short and snappy, mine is quite long and I have often wished it was shorter on X for example my handle had to be ‘bloomingmindxx’ instead.
• It’s okay to be open – Being open and honest about your mental health or chronic illnesses can be very overwhelming and scary at first. But it is by being open about them, that we can help others the most, people going through chronic illnesses need to know they aren’t alone. Also, by being open you can help them understand their symptoms but also for you to realise your symptoms are just part of the illness and not something to worry about, or the opposite. It also helps your community to connect with you.
• Connect – The best part of blogging for me has been sharing and reading other people’s posts and following them on social media. So, add as many people who are blogging and sharing about disability and chronic illness as possible. This will give you inspiration, ideas and tips of how to improve and what is working for others. It is never okay to copy someone else, but it should be about constantly improving and growing together.
• Be you – This is the most important, don’t try to write like others, or have your blog look like someone else. You have favourite colours, favourite sayings and things you want to say that nobody else will have. We all have unique gifts and insights, and they are all important, so be yourself and let your heart and your experiences shine out in your blog.

I really hope that if you are thinking about doing this, that these tips for blogging with chronic illnesses helped in some way. Blogging is such a lovely hobby and if you do start one make sure to follow me on social media so we can support one another. Let me know down below if there is anything I have missed or if you have any questions.

Thank you xx

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