I’d like to introduce you to Hannah Wingert, author of Yet Will I Praise Him: Living and Parenting with a Chronic Illness.
Though we’ve never met in person, Hannah Wingert has positively impacted my life. Please join me in welcoming mom of four, fabric collector, and hero-blazing-cape-wearer, Hannah Wingert to our cozy corner.
Hannah is the author of Yet Will I Praise Him: Living and Parenting with a Chronic Illness. Hannah and all four of her children have hypermobile Ehlers Danlos Syndrome. EDS is a connective tissue disorder, which causes constant sprains, dislocated joints, muscular pain, and fatigue.
In her book, Yet Will I Praise Him, Hannah Wingert articulates the struggles and emotions plagued by chronic illness warrior- words often difficult to express. When I read this book, I exclaimed, “She gets me!”
One Book in Three Parts
In the book, Wingert speaks to three areas of a chronic illness: “Living as a Spoonie”, “Parenting as a Spoonie”, and “Loving a Spoonie”.
What is a Spoonie?
What is a Spoonie? The term Spoonie refers to anyone with a chronic illness. This term derived from The Spoon Theory, went viral when written by Christie Miserandino on her blog, butyoudon’tlooksick.com.
Q & A with Hannah Wingert:
Q: How did you get into writing?
A: I’ve been writing ever since I learned how to do it! I wrote my first story when I was six years old and I haven’t quit yet. Writing took a backseat when I started having kids. Then I discovered blogging. Through my blogging and writing, I’ve made a lot of connections online and forged friendships that are still going strong.
Q: What prompted you to write the book “Yet Will I Praise Him?”
A: After being diagnosed with Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, the next logical step for me was to read a book written for moms living with a chronic illness. I only found one book. Although it was helpful and good to read, it wasn’t written from a faith-based perspective so I decided to write one.
Q: What does an average day look like for you?
A: After, I get the kids off to school, sit down for some time with God, and then spend the day doing household chores, making phone calls, answering emails, etc. with lots of breaks as my energy and pain levels dictate. Between all four kids and I, we usually have 1-3 appointments or therapies a week so on those days, our schedule is a little bit off, but we’re used to it so we make it work. The clinic is over an hour away so sometimes it feels like I live in my van.
Q: If all your household “chores” were complete, what would be your favorite way to spend the day?
A: With music playing on the Alexa, I’d alternate between reading, writing while sipping a chai latte. I also enjoy sewing clothes. I am trying to reduce my huge fabric stash by making new things for my kids and me to wear.
Q: Name one life lesson that you didn’t want to have to learn, but you are grateful you did, and why?
A: I’ve dealt with health issues my whole life (which make perfect sense now that I know I have EDS), but I always had the assumption that it would eventually get better by making excuses such as stress from work, I just had a baby, etc.
When I was diagnosed, it finally hit me that this was my life and I needed to accept that my health problems weren’t going anywhere. I went through a period where I was very angry about my EDS, but eventually, I worked through it with the grace of God.
I wouldn’t say that I’m necessarily thankful for my health issues, but I am very thankful for how I’ve learned and grown closer to God through them.
Depression has been an ongoing part of my journey, and I want people to know that having depression does not make you a “bad” Christian. Hannah Wingert
Author, Yet Will I Praise Him
Q: How can we support you?
A: Share my book! My main goal for my book is for it to reach the people who need it the most. I have a huge burden for other moms going through situations similar to mine.
Friends, Yet Will I Praise Him, is available anywhere books are sold. It is also available on Kindle.
If you or someone you know has a chronic illness, this book will be a valuable hope-filled resource.