"My estranged sister, "Taylor," appears to be at the end of her life, in her 30s. Taylor is intense, driven, and ambitious with an eye for detail. She was a teen athlete when she developed anorexia. Now, coupled with substance abuse, it seems to be taking a toll. She was in and out of residential treatment as a teen, but when she became an adult, no one could make her go. Two years ago, I tried again to talk to her about therapy,"
"Dear Sister, I've never thought about how hard it must be to be estranged from someone, but have a window into their life to watch their suffering. This has to be really hard. I do want to point out that suffering-and even doing really, really poorly in terms of health-is not the same as being at death's door. You can't tell by looking at someone exactly how serious their condition is or how much time"
An estranged sister, Taylor, is publicly visibly unwell in her 30s after long struggles with anorexia and substance abuse. The family was never close and Taylor cut off contact as an adult. The writer attends a support group for families of addicts and is on a therapy waitlist. Acquaintances and classmates have begun asking about Taylor and sometimes scolding the writer for not intervening. The writer seeks ways to shut down unexpected questions. A responder notes that visible suffering is not the same as imminent death and that one cannot determine time left by appearance alone.
Read at Slate Magazine
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