Today we’d like to introduce you to Claire Dalton.
Hi Claire, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
My name is Claire Dalton, and I am a blogger, farmer, chronic illness and Lyme Disease advocate, and I am the founder of The Chronically Care Project. When I was sixteen years old, my mom was diagnosed with chronic Lyme disease. She had been sick on and off throughout my growing-up years, but as a young teenager in high school one day she just got sick and she didn’t get better. My mom is a strong woman and she’s also a fighter. Back then we looked for many doctors and practitioners that could possibly help her, but we found none. After a couple of years of fighting this mystery illness, we finally found a doctor that tested her for Lyme disease, and after years of wondering, we were finally diagnosed.
Throughout this experience, I experienced many strange symptoms that were hard to pinpoint as well, and my mom took me to see that doctor right before I left for college. I went to college at Southern Utah University when I was 18, and my health suddenly declined. I was a vocal performance major on scholarship, trying to keep up with my symptoms and accomplish what I needed to at school. I dealt with daily panic attacks, anxiety, muscle pain, joint pain, pain in my feet, cognitive dysfunction, depression, horrendous pain in my lower abdomen and legs, plus many other symptoms. These symptoms got worse with time.
So, when I got the call that I had Lyme disease about mid-semester, my doctor told me that I have one of two options. I can go home and start treatment. or I can stay at college and perhaps take a turn for the worse and lose my life as a consequence. I began treatment at college which added another stress to my daily schedule. Every day I spent hours rating and recording symptoms, recording my vitals, and taking treatment. At one point I slept with oxygen tubes as part of my treatment and I remember feeling like everything in my world was utmostly uncomfortable and hugely stress-inducing.
So, I went home, and I never went back. I went home from college and began the longest journey of my life, fighting for my life in the fight against Lyme disease. In the past 8 years, I’ve been through endless protocols and treatments always with the hope that something was going to make me better. And by the grace of God, I slowly started to improve.
Now, at age 25 I manage my family’s farm, and I am the founder of The Chronically Care Project; a non-profit organization that sends care packages full of love and support through handmade items to those who are chronically ill all over the U.S. Somewhere along the way, I realized that one of the most devastating parts of living with Chronic Lyme was the isolation and loneliness that accompanies it. I told my mom many times that I thought the loneliness was going to kill me before the Lyme did. Lyme disease doesn’t have a lot of recognition really anywhere. Neither do many of the chronic illnesses out there. People tend to misunderstand what you’re going through and they leave you alone, or they talk about you behind your back. I set out to change this through The Chronically Care Project. I wanted to make a difference in people’s lives. I wanted the ill to know that even though they are sick they are still loved, cared for, and have great value. I wanted to change the world, one person at a time.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
I never pictured myself farming, or running a non-profit organization. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think I could do what I’m doing now. When I was 18 and in college, I thought all I could do was sing, and that’s what I planned my life around. When I got sick, all of my plans for my life blew out the window in a sudden burst. I had no clue what had hit me, but I also didn’t know the glorious plans that God had for me along the way.
In my first few years of being sick I did absolutely nothing except treatments, protocols, sleeping, and well… being sick! I didn’t believe I had much ability to do anything, and frankly, I didn’t. The one thing I could do though was sit in a chair in our sunroom and do crafts. So, I would craft! I’m pretty sure at that time I crafted just about everything. I tried everything, and I bought lots of supplies for things that I ended up hating and never used again! Along the way, I ran out of neighbors, friends, and family members to give my finished crafts to, so I built up a pile of things; finished, and unfinished.
When I was about 22, I got an Instagram. And I did a giveaway where I bought a blanket from Walmart to giveaway to help me grow and gain some followers. I remember back then when I messaged the girl who won the blanket how excited and happy she was to receive it in the mail, mainly because she was really chronically ill and this was a small symbol of something to look forward to. So, then the idea sparked in my head! I KNEW how to make blankets! So why don’t I make blankets and start giving them away through my social media??? So, I pulled out all the fleece in my closet and started making blankets. And I shipped them to people who were chronically ill on my social media. And I named it The Chronically Care Project. It wasn’t about gaining followers now, it was about sending smiles to people who were chronically ill in the form of a blanket, and letting those who are suffering know that they are so loved.
Since then, I have sent well over 200 blankets, and the Chronically Care Project has expanded to a full care package program for the chronically ill. People apply for a care package through my website and receive a box on their doorstep full of mostly handmade items that are meant to offer them love and care. It has never always been easy. I sew, laser engrave, cut, glue, paint, and probably so much more through this project! Machinery breaks down, sometimes I don’t know what I’m doing, items don’t turn out how I want, and volunteers don’t always show up or follow through when they say they will. It’s been one crazy ride and it has had its challenges including managing my own health throughout the whole thing. But every step of the way it’s been worth it and I absolutely love it. The miracles I have seen through it make all of the struggles completely worth it. There isn’t anything smooth about stepping onto a new road you’ve never walked before, but that’s part of the excitement of the journey!
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
One thing that makes the Chronically Care Project really unique is that it’s FOR the Chronically Ill, BY the Chronically ill. I have Lyme disease myself, which means I know that battle. I know exactly how a lot of the people feel on a physical and emotional level and I also know just how dark and terrifying it can be. And it’s not just me who is involved in this. I have interacted with probably hundreds of donors for this project who are also chronically ill, and HAND-MAKING items to be put in these packages. So as a result of all of that, this isn’t just a thrown-together box of stuff. It’s handmade, well thought out, with heart and soul poured into every ounce and crevice. I want people to see and feel the love of God in their care package. I want them to receive a treasure chest of pure love and care to the point that they feel it bursting out the seems of the box when they open it.
I work really hard to hand-make a lot of items. I also work really hard as a farmhand and sales representative for a monument company so I can afford to do this project and ship this many boxes every season. Let’s just say I wear MANY hats. But all those hats have become a beautiful piece of who I am. And I wouldn’t want it any other way. How do I do it all? Through the grace of God. He makes it all possible. And all along the way, I get to experience healing in my own body. Because even more so than treatments and protocols, joy and love are two very powerful medicines.
The Chronically Care Project is open for donations year round! Help our non-profit organization grow by donating to the cause monetarily, or through items that can go into care packages! We are always looking for heartfelt, handmade items to include in our care packages that are made by people who have a heart to offer some love to someone who needs it. We accept all kinds of items. For ideas, you can visit our donation page at https://www.
Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
For those who are beginning their chronic illness journey: This is NOT the end. Your diagnosis or beginning of a treatment protocol is not the end of your life and it’s certainly not the end of your dreams either. Chronic illness is just one big paradigm shift from what you thought you were supposed to do with your life, to your God-given mission for your life.
For those who are at the beginning of starting their own non-profit, business, or any life endeavor: DO NOT listen to the nay-sayers! Don’t listen to the people criticizing, mocking, or doubting your abilities. Don’t listen to the ones who have dropped out of your life and now think negatively about you. Don’t believe that what you do doesn’t matter because IT DOES matter! Let the nay-sayers drive you into the design and purpose for your life because nobody ever got good at anything by playing it safe, never taking risks, and listening to the chronic “can’t-ers” of this world. Trust that God has a plan for you. It may not be what you think it was, but usually, it’s ten times better.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.chronicallybeautifullife.com
- Instagram: @chronicly_claire
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chronicallybeautiful/
