Photo by AS Photography
The role of photography in one’s life can go far beyond being a hobby or a profession. It can support mental health and give people living with chronic illness a way to hold onto joy, even when their bodies try to push them into darkness.
In September 2022, my life changed. I went from being one of the most physically active people I knew to being bed bound. Post-viral fatigue was the first diagnosis, Long Covid was the second. Then came, “we’re not really sure what’s going on,” and finally, “it’s just something you’re going to have to live with.”
Three years later, I still live with a host of chronic symptoms. I’m no longer confined to bed, and my quality of life has improved, but this illness still dominates my days, weighing on my existence.
One thing that helps me cope is photography. When I have the energy to go out and make images, nothing else matters. With the camera to my eye and my finger on the shutter, I’m not chronically ill; I’m a photographer.
I knew I wasn’t the only person using photography to hold onto a sense of identity.
Earlier this year, I interviewed Iness Rychlik, who has a chronic skin condition as well as neurological symptoms. She creates self-portraits to help bring understanding to her illness and process what’s happening with her body.
Photo by Iness Rychlik
John Park, a photographer living with chronic depression, also turns to photography as a lifeline. In his interview, he told me:
“Photography is unexpectedly meditative. It forces me to see the world with fresh eyes, which is strangely therapeutic and deepened my connection with people and the world. It’s the most powerful way I’ve found to participate in my own life.”
Photo by John Park
I also spoke with Cam Crosland, a UK street photographer with ME/CFS. The condition drains the body’s energy, causes brain fog, and severely impacts daily life. On photography’s role, he shared:
“In a life affected daily by chronic illness, photography gives me a sense of purpose. It’s an outlet for self-expression and a way of releasing stress. Photography gives me a vivid and detailed way of observing and experiencing the world around me, taking nothing for granted. I find it inwardly energizing, despite battling a chronic illness which saps mental and physical energy.
Making pictures brings a sense of mindfulness, appreciation and enjoyment. The sheer satisfaction of creating is an antidote to getting bogged down in the relentless difficulty of life. When life feels like wading through treacle, making pictures brings a spark of joy.
Being restricted in my activity for substantial periods has really sharpened my appreciation of what it’s like to experience the world. When I started out, I would take a camera with me every time I went out, these days a phone also does the job. But I have the same mindset of always looking for opportunities.
That’s why I love street photography—it’s that idea that a picture can be found at any moment, anywhere and anytime, sometimes a wonderful opportunity created by events or just the lighting conditions, sometimes it’s just the creative challenge of making something out of nothing. And those opportunities where I go out to make pictures with my Fuji and flash feel all the more satisfying.”
Photo by Cam Crosland
Amber Waterfield, a longtime friend and fellow photographer, lives with Fibromyalgia. The condition causes debilitating widespread pain, fatigue, and neurological symptoms.
Despite her illness, Waterfield has built a photography business and has done meaningful work in her local community of Kettering, UK. For her, photography is much more than a career, as she beautifully describes:
“For me, photography has always been an escape. Living in a body that does not always respond the way I want it to can be frustrating, but the moment I pick up a camera something shifts. With a lens in my hands, I find confidence in myself again. For a brief moment, I return to the person I once was, steady, capable, and in control.
There is a calm that settles over me the instant I remove the lens cap and point my camera toward the world. Each frame offers me the chance to freeze time exactly as I see it, to hold onto a fleeting instant that would otherwise disappear.
Over the last ten years my body has changed beyond recognition, yet my creative drive remains unshaken. Photography has been with me for nearly 35 years, ever since I received my first camera for my third birthday. I remember being captivated by the idea that you could preserve a moment forever in a picture. That sense of wonder has never left me.
When I go out with my camera, I can be my truest self, sometimes even hiding behind the lens. I love the suspense of film photography, where you never quite know if you have captured the image as you intended, and the creative possibilities of digital, where moments can be enhanced and transformed into something magical.
But perhaps the greatest joy of all comes from sharing. Handing over a gallery and seeing someone’s face light up when they see their memories preserved is incomparable.
For me, photography is more than a hobby or a career. It is a lifeline. It keeps my mind calm, gives me space to breathe, and helps me hold on to the beauty of the world, one frame at a time.”
Photo by Amber Waterfield
Signing Off
Photography cannot cure chronic illness. It can, however, soothe it and make life more manageable. When the body wants to shut down, photography can give the brain a reason to stay switched on. It brings purpose, or at the very least, blissful distraction.
Chronic illness can change your life, but it doesn’t have to close the door on your enjoyment of this little miracle we exist within. Even on the darkest days, picking up your camera and taking one shot can remind you that life isn’t all bad – that beauty and joy are still out there waiting to be found.
More reading: 21 Photographers Reveal Why They Need Photography In their Life
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