“Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking & inhumane.” –Martin Luther King Jr.

 

My Interpretation: Care was never meant to be a luxury. But here we are – paying for survival like it is optional, begging for basic human needs, & being punished for trying to stay afloat before we break. The system shows what it values, & it has never been us.

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Insurance covers everything EXCEPT the things that ACTUALLY matter

Every millennial has lived this moment –

that tiny flicker of dread when your body whispers,

“Hey… something’s wrong,”

& your bank account whispers louder,

“Babe, absolutely not.”

 

Toothache.

Migraine.

Rash.

Panic attack.

Tight chest.

Strange dizziness.

The overwhelming weight of seventeen childhood traumas you definitely did not process correctly.

Or waking up & realizing your nervous system is short-circuiting because life has been one long emergency drill.

 

& your first thought is not

“Am I okay?”

It is always

“Can I afford this?”

 

Because America taught us to quantify pain on a sliding scale of deductibles.

To assess symptoms like accountants.

To ration wellness like war-time rations.

 

This is not inconvenience.

This is emotional violence.

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THE SYSTEM IS BUILT AROUND THE COLLAPSE

Insurance will gladly cover:

 

☒ broken bones

☒ catastrophes

☒ hospital stays

☒ surgeries that sound cinematic

☒ rare disorders

☒ car crashes

☒ the stuff that signals “urgent & dramatic” on paper

 

But anything that keeps you functioning?

 

✘ Dental

✘ therapy

✘ eyes

✘ hearing

✘ mental health

✘ chronic anything

✘ preventative anything

✘ trauma support

✘ regulation skills

✘ emotional stability

✘ basic human upkeep?

 

Absolutely fucking not.

 

You can lose a tooth

↪︎ but you are still expected to smile.

You can lose your mind

↪︎ but only after it becomes “serious enough.”

You can lose sleep, routine, peace, safety, & sanity

↪︎ but unless you are actually on fire, no one gives a shit.

 

We get punished for trying to take care of ourselves before the collapse.

Punished for awareness.

Punished for prevention.

Punished for wanting to exist without suffering.

 

The system does not help early.

It only swoops in when it can feel heroic.

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THE MILLENNIAL DECLINE WAS NOT AN ACCIDENT

We grew up being told:

“Go to college & get a good job.”

“Work hard & everything will be fine.”

“Healthcare is for emergencies.”

“Don’t go to the doctor for every little thing.”

“You don’t need therapy – you need to toughen up.”

 

Now we are 30

31

32

33+

running on caffeine, panic, & two working brain cells fighting for custody of our sanity.

 

✌︎ Our bodies click like haunted antiques.

✌︎ Our teeth send eviction notices.

✌︎ Our joints file formal complaints.

✌︎ Our brains overheat like a 2012 laptop.

✌︎ Our trauma response is the only part of us still thriving.

 

We are the maintenance crew of our own decline.

We Google our symptoms at midnight.

We take vitamins out of fear.

We take car naps because therapy is $150 a session & apparently emotional survival is a luxury item.

 

We were not prepared for adulthood.

We were prepared to endure.

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THE DENTAL CRISIS THAT SHOULD BE A WAR CRIME

Tell me why dental is separate.

Tell me why the literal bones that stick out of our faces are considered optional maintenance.

 

Dental pain has brought grown adults to their knees.

A crown is a down payment.

A root canal is a vacation.

A cleaning is a privilege.

A filling is a financial negotiation.

Braces?

Just let the teeth be little rebels at this point.

 

Tell me why teeth, ears, eyes, & minds are treated like add-ons when they are literally part of our body.

 

Insurance said:

“Your body is covered – but not the parts you actually use.”

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THE TRUTH HIDING UNDER THE RANT

It is not about the tooth.

Or the bill.

Or the denied claim.

Or the misunderstanding.

Or the loophole.

Or the panic.

Or the paperwork.

Or the hours on the phone.

 

It is about the ache beneath all of it.

 

We were taught to see needing help as weakness.

➜ Needing care as burden.

➜ Needing rest as laziness.

➜ Needing support as inconvenience.

➜ Needing therapy as indulgent.

➜ Needing stability as unrealistic.

 

This is not about money.

It is about worth.

 

Self worth.

Emotional worth.

The kind the system never acknowledges

but we are finally learning to reclaim.

 

We deserve care.

➮ Not at the breaking point.

➮ Not when the collapse is visible.

➮ Not when the ER bill hits $4,800.

➮ Not when the tooth infection becomes dangerous.

➮ Not when the panic attack becomes public.

➮ Not when the depression becomes unmanageable.

 

Daily.

Softly.

Quietly.

Steadily.

 

We deserve a life that does not require suffering as proof.

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WHY DO WE HAVE TO BREAK TO BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY?

The system waits for the fall.

The moment you cannot hide it.

The moment your pain becomes undeniable.

The moment you are shaking, crying, bleeding, or collapsing.

 

Then – & only then – it steps in like it is doing you a favor.

 

Preventative care is rare.

Early intervention is rare.

Mental health support is rare.

Compassion is rare.

 

But judgment?

Plentiful.

Immediate.

Free of charge.

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THE SOFT, QUIET, ANGRY TRUTH

Millennials did not become anxious for no reason.

We did not wake up depressed for fun.

We did not develop hyper-vigilance out of nowhere.

We did not inherit burnout because we love chaos.

 

Someone taught our bodies to brace.

Someone taught our minds to panic.

Someone taught our hearts to be alert at all times.

 

We walk through life as a battlefield & a miracle at the same time

& no one sees the invisible labor our bodies perform just to feel safe for five minutes.

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WE ARE EXHAUSTED – BUT WE ARE AWAKE

Millennials may be:

✘ exhausted

✘ traumatized

✘ overworked

✘ under supported

✘ fractured

✘ frustrated

✘ financially cornered

✘ emotionally duct taped

 

But we are also:

✌︎ self aware

✌︎ pattern breaking

✌︎ therapy going

✌︎ emotion naming

✌︎ cycle ending

✌︎ nervous system rewiring

✌︎ soft hearted

✌︎ resilient

✌︎ & done staying quiet about our pain.

 

We heal anyway.

We choose softness anyway.

We break generational curses anyway.

We parent better anyway.

We advocate anyway.

We rise anyway.

 

We may not have been given a stable system

but we are building a stable self.

 

& that?

That is the revolution.

 

Xoxo ♡