Dianna Adams

Dianna Adams lives in Virginia Beach, married to a Navy SEAL for 24 years. He was on active duty for 26 years and upon retirement spent 3 years, unemployed and being her caregiver. Without his intensive help, she would not have made it. She has 2 sons, aged 21 and 19. She parented them mostly from bed while her husband fought in 4 wars. Despite their hardships they have prevailed. She is still permanently disabled, but is out of bed now and working to reclaim her life.

Response to creative prompt: "When I look in the mirror, I see..."

I’ve had multiple chronic illnesses but it all began in 1991 with Breast Implant Illness which, by 2005, had almost killed me. What started out as a search for beauty ended up being the ugliest part of my life. Before I became sick, my passion was surfing, skateboarding, fishing, music and art, and anything related to the ocean as I have lived at the beach all of my life. I was also a psychotherapist living out my dream of having a private practice. And I had also worked for years with the United States Surfing Team. Then the Breast Implant Illness took it all away causing a downhill spiral of multiple illnesses, toxicities and permanent disability. After being mostly bedridden for more than 10 years and suffering from extreme pain, mood and memory problems, I sought out alternative ways of healing naturally. I used music and art to retrain my brain and nutrition and supplements to heal my body.

When I look in the mirror, I see resilience.