What great fun! This past week I participated in a photo shoot for Health
Central’s Big Picture project. Have you heard of this? It’s a very cool, Humans
of NY-ish approach to showcase that living with chronic illness is only part of
the ‘bigger picture’ of our lives. In my case, we snapped pics of me riding my
bicycle, one of my hobbies (and there are plenty) that I am really passionate
about. My health story will be highlighted which is that I try my best to live
my life by doing things that I really love, including riding my bike as fast as
I can, despite Multiple Sclerosis.
The morning of our photo shoot, we met photographer Kent Mercurio at a little
coffee shop in sunny Coronado, California. We chatted over treats and coffee
while we got to know each other. We talked about a lot of stuff including the
diagnosis process of Multiple Sclerosis, my journey living with the disease,
and, of course, cycling and photography, my two favorite hobbies. Our chat was
really nice because it set a relaxed and friendly tone for our photo shoot.
Kent is a really nice guy.
The shoot consisted of several shots of me riding (I was really careful not to run Kent over in the process – we had a couple of close calls!), posing with my bike, and a few contemplative portraits. We even managed to squeeze in a few shots of Luca the Sock Monkey who is our mascot for Team Luca in the annual Bike MS Bay to Bay event. Kent shot with sunny San Diego as a backdrop – the bay, the palm trees, sail boats, San Diego city skyline - I can’t wait to see how the photos turned out.
The shoot consisted of several shots of me riding (I was really careful not to run Kent over in the process – we had a couple of close calls!), posing with my bike, and a few contemplative portraits. We even managed to squeeze in a few shots of Luca the Sock Monkey who is our mascot for Team Luca in the annual Bike MS Bay to Bay event. Kent shot with sunny San Diego as a backdrop – the bay, the palm trees, sail boats, San Diego city skyline - I can’t wait to see how the photos turned out.
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| Sunny San Diego! |
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| Kent capturing my love for cycling |
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| Close up! |
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| Great back drop of sunny San Diego |
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| Luca the Sock Monkey! |
The photo shoot also gave me the motivation to hop back in
the saddle after a wee break. Last year was a tough one for me personally and I
did what I often do when I am stressed or face life-altering challenges – I put
the bike aside. This photo shoot turned things around for me and cycling around
Coronado that day helped me remember that, yes, I have a serious neurological
disease, but, you know what? I choose to ride on. I choose to do the things
that I love. I choose to live a happy life despite it.
P.S. a HUGE thank you to the team at Remedy Health Media,
Health Central, and Kent Mercurio for giving me this opportunity and inspiring
me to make 2016 the year of cycling, despite living with Multiple Sclerosis –
you guys rock!
Take care,
Christie
For more information, please check out the links below:
- “Why You Should Share Your Story about Living with a Chronic Illness” www.healthcentral.com
- Remedy Health Media: http://www.remedyhealthmedia.com
- Kent Mercurio Photography: http://www.kentmercurio.com
