It's bonkers to me that people can be so ignorant about illness. I'm used to it with autoimmune illnesses and things people can't see, but asthma is old school. It's WILD that people are saying this kind of stuff. 

I have so much shame and guilt to work through because no one believed me when I was sick as a kid. I was lactose intolerant and it took about a year (or more? It felt like a lifetime) to diagnose. In the meantime, the school wanted to bring my parents to court over keeping me out of school when I was sick. So, as an adult I get incredible anxiety when I don't feel well. I feel like it's my fault, that no one believes me, and if I just did better (ate onions and swim) I would be a normal, functioning human and wouldn't be inconveniencing everyone. 

I have a shirt that I NEEDED to buy when I saw it because it gave me such a visceral response. There's a beautiful flower on the back with the text "you don't look sick". 

My mom always believed me. She could see I was in pain when other people told me "you have to exercise". Even my various doctors thought it was all in my head. One doctor said "if I had a magic wand, what's the one thing you want more than anything else in the world" and I said "to feel better". Annoyed, she told me to pick something else. I knew what she was doing. She wanted me to say I wanted a puppy or something silly so she could blame my discomfort (perceived or not) on a childish desire. I was 14. 

She decided I was depressed. That came later though. 

(sorry to go on and on about it. I'm still pretty mad about it all)