Excerpt from Heather's Interview

Heather is inspired by people who do great things and who really live life each day trying to make a mark and help other people—people who give whatever resources they have without worrying about the money. “Our whole society has just become so money crazy. We’ve lost sight of a lot of the more important things in life. So when I see on the news a really good story or something sad it inspires me.”

Politics and unfairness inspires Heather to write. “I really should have been a journalist because I have a thing about unfairness. So I’ve written letters to the editors and stuff like that. I would like to be a writer and editor. Ultimately I hope I can get into that.”

Her girlfriend is one of those inspirational people, whose selflessness helps Heather to cope, “Despite being on disability, she takes care of her home, helps her parents, and volunteers at the dialysis center at the Des Moines Methodist Hospital. Her kidneys stopped functioning. She went through years of dialysis and eventually got a kidney from her own mother.”

Another method Heather uses to cope is to stay busy. “This week I have been off from school. I really think that that’s the key—having things to do. If I wasn’t doing stuff this week, I would probably have laid around the whole time, gotten depressed. I’ve been applying for jobs in Des Moines so that keeps me pretty busy.”

Heather feels her fibromyalgia is not as severe as it can be for others. “I do think people get it in different degrees. But I also think it’s the effort. I push myself to try to do things, even if I don’t want to.”