Thank you, Lauren, for sharing your story with us!
Tell us about yourself!
I’m Lauren Watt, and I’m 22 years old. I live in the suburbs of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with my parents, crestepoo, and three lovebirds. I have two older brothers and a sister-in-law. I love reading and listening to audiobooks, crocheting, walking, and spending time with family and friends. Currently, I’m taking online classes for college credit. At least, that’s the part of my bio that makes me sound “normal.” As you probably guessed given the blog on which I’m being interviewed, there is more to my story.
I have struggled with chronic illness since just before turning 14. It began with a sudden onset of Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS) that led to me carrying an EpiPen everywhere. Everyday foods, smells, and chemicals caused me to flush, break out in hives, become nauseous and fatigued, have tachycardia, and, in more serious episodes, experience throat tightness and lightheadedness. Then five months after the severe MCAS began, I contracted a Urinary Tract Infection. I recovered from the UTI, but I was left permanently worse.
After the UTI, new symptoms kept popping up every week. My hair began to thin, my joints ached, my head constantly hurt, I was often nauseated, brain fog set in, and I was exhausted and slept for hours every day. I became homebound and mostly bedridden.
Eventually, I was diagnosed with a tick-borne infection, and for years, I did lots of different treatments from IVs to boost my immune system to antibiotic treatment. Those years were a rollercoaster. During this time, I was also diagnosed with Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome and Gastroparesis, and my MCAS became so bad that my parents had to cook outside due to my sensitivity to smell. I tried lots of treatments for the MCAS, even chemotherapy, but with little to no relief. I became very underweight and weak and depended on my parents to wash my hair and bring food to my bedside.
Thankfully, in 2019, I was diagnosed with multiple hormone deficiencies, and I began to improve with the prescribed replacements. I also started antibiotic treatment for another tick-borne infection, and I made gradual improvement. After a few years of treatment, I got to the point of being able to walk a mile multiple times a week and leave the house once or twice a month for a short outing, but I was still far from well and still spending the majority of my time in bed.
Then in 2023, I began a brain retraining program and began to address trauma related to my years of illness. The Lord has brought me so much healing as a result, and that first paragraph of my bio is now an amazing reality, although I’m still healing, functioning with less energy than the typical twenty-something, and weaning off medication.
What has God taught you in your valley of chronic illness?
God has taught me many things as a result of my chronic illness. One of the biggest realizations has been my humanness and need for God. I’ve experienced profound limits and weakness and have come face to face with the reality that I can’t do anything on my own but only through Him who strengthens me. That is something I knew before I became ill but that I hadn’t fully grasped. At first, that was a humbling realization, but ultimately, it has given me grace to be human and embrace my physical, emotional, and spiritual needs and to let Christ’s power shine through my weakness.
I’ve also learned that the lens through which we view our life will greatly influence our experience of suffering. We can choose to focus on everything that is going wrong or we can choose to focus on God’s character and our blessings. I have found that life is a lot easier when I renew my mind in God’s Word, take my thoughts captive, and count my blessings.
What Scriptures have spoken to you in your times of need?
A little over a year into my health struggles, I felt forgotten by God. The gospels I once loved with stories of Jesus healing the sick now felt like rubbing salt into an open wound because I knew the healing God could do but was choosing not to do in my situation. It was during this time that I listened to a piano track by David Nevue entitled Psalm 77. I didn’t know what that psalm was, so I read it. In the psalm, the author is honest about his feelings and says in verses 7-9:
Will the LORD spurn forever, and never again be favorable?
Has His steadfast love forever ceased? Are His promises at an end for all time?
Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has he in anger shut up His compassion?
But then the psalmist calls to mind how God has shown His faithfulness in the past. That encouraged me to do the same and helped me get through that dark time. The psalm meant so much to me that I memorized it!
What is the best part of your chronic illness?
I’m glad you asked! Chronic illness doesn’t have to be all doom and gloom. We can make lemonade.
Because of my chronic illness, my parents started a CaringBridge page to share updates on my health when I was 14. Eventually, I began writing on it, and friends told me I was a gifted writer. Their comments grew my confidence and led to me starting a public blog and writing for a Christian magazine targeted towards those with chronic illness and their families. I’ve made many friends as a result of sharing my story publicly, and it’s a blessing to be able to encourage others going through similar struggles and to be encouraged by them.
How would you encourage other women with chronic illness?
Stay in the Word. I know that can be difficult with brain fog, but it’s okay to read and meditate on even one verse.
Keep praying, even when it’s hard. It takes courage to keep coming to God in prayer when He isn’t answering in the way we’d hoped, but even if all we can find the strength to pray is a prayer of lament, that is okay. The important thing is that we’re staying with God and not walking away. Given the situation, lament can be a proper response that ushers us back into God’s presence as we wrestle with Him.
Try to remain in fellowship with other Christians to the extent that you can. That is easier said than done, but we aren’t meant to do life on our own.
What resources have helped you?
- Sarah Jackson Coaching has helped me heal from trauma related to my chronic illness. She is a Christian, and I highly recommend her Zoom classes and her membership RESTORE.
- Strong Like Water by Aundi Kolber is a book that gave me permission to acknowledge what I’ve gone through, understand how it has impacted me, and find tools to heal.
- Chronic Joy is an amazing ministry, and they have a lot of helpful resources on their website.
- Hope When It Hurts by Kristen Wetherell and Sarah Walton is the most gospel-centered book that I’ve read on suffering.
Can you relate to Lauren’s story? What part of her testimony most encouraged you? Any words you would like to leave for her in the comments?
The Valley 