In Spite of Everything

The transition from adolescence to adulthood is a period usually defined by big changes, increased autonomy, and the search for independence. But for young people managing chronic illness, these changes, and their future plans, have to come second to their health. By ages 30–34, 13% of the general population has not completed education beyond primary school. Among people with a chronic or physical illness, that number rises to 24%. Hospital appointments, physical distress and uncertainty can take precedence over studies, social life and long-term plans. Illness does not only affect the body, one sees themselves, and how they are seen by the world around them. This is the story of three people aged 21–24, and how they navigate the world while living with health issues.

Rosa, 24

Rosa lives in Copenhagen, just steps away from the first doctor’s office she ever visited. Her symptoms began during her final year of high school, first as persistent colds and nosebleeds, then escalating into severe ear pain and hearing loss. Initially dismissed as stress or lifestyle-related, her condition worsened until she was nearly deaf, had lost a significant amount of weight and experiencing lung complications.

After months of uncertainty and misdiagnosis, Rosa was diagnosed at 19 with granulomatosis with polyangiitis, a rare autoimmune disease affecting blood vessels in the ears, sinuses and lungs. She was hospitalized, placed on immunosuppressive treatment and forced to pause her plans. A year later, a relapse caused bronchial narrowing and restricted airflow to the lungs, which led to shortness of breath and required surgery to fix, just days before she was meant to begin her bachelor’s degree.

Despite setbacks, Rosa chose to continue forward. She began her studies, rebuilt her daily life and gradually regained her hearing, defying doctors’ expectations that the damage might be permanent. Today, her condition is mostly stable. She no longer uses hearing aids and is currently studying part-time in her master’s program at the IT University of Copenhagen.

Open about her illness, Rosa sees it not as something to hide, but as a defining force in who she has become.

Anna, 21

Anna’s apartment is filled wall to wall with her own drawings and paintings. Art has long been her way of coping, a constant through years marked by physical pain and mental strain. She now lives with her cat just outside the city and is nearing the end of an STU program, an education designed for young people unable to complete other youth education paths due to physical or cognitive disabilities.

Anna has lived with physical pain for as long as she can remember. Problems with her hips and knees caused her feet to point in different directions, making walking difficult and often painful. Frequent falls and injuries became part of her childhood, and because her father also lived with chronic pain after an accident, Anna grew up believing constant pain was normal. She cannot recall a time in her life without it.

The physical limitations shaped her mental health early on. By the age of nine, Anna was already experiencing anxiety and depression, compounded by feeling different from her peers and being unable to participate in physical activities. School became increasingly difficult, and years of being singled out in sports and daily life gradually shaped how she saw herself.

For much of her childhood, Anna was told she would grow out of her condition. It wasn’t until she was 18 that doctors started doing scans and finding the underlying issue, and with it, a treatment path. At 20, she underwent two surgeries on her legs and hips. The change was immideate, she could walk without collapsing, much of her pain disappeared, and her mental health improved almost overnight.

Today, Anna’s life is more stable. While she still experiences pain, it is manageable, and she feels herself improving. She is close to finishing her studies, spends time gaming and with friends, and continues to create art. In her bedroom, traces of her medical past remain, drawings born from darker periods and a small box holding the stitches from her surgeries.

Anna is open about her experiences and cautious of assumptions. She emphasizes that illness isn’t always obvious, especially in young people, and that being believed can make a huge impact.

Amanda, 21

Most days, Amanda can be found at the riding school just outside Ringsted, in the secluded countryside. “I feel so peaceful here,” she says. The stable has become the center of her daily life. “This place has a very special place in my heart, and it’s helped me feel normal and get through the difficult times.”

Amanda lives with her family in Ringsted and has a non-cancerous tumor next to her spine that caused nerve damage, leaving her with mobility issues. She credits her family for supporting her through the hardest periods of her life and says her illness has made her a more understanding and thankful person. She began school like most children, starting in a regular classroom, but quickly realized how difficult it was to keep up and fit in while managing her physical challenges. In the summer, she finished her studies at an STU.

Most of her days she spends at the riding school where she says her riding instructor has helped her through the tougher periods of her life. Otherwise her days vary, twice a week she attends physiotherapy to strengthen her body, other days she visits her grandparents, rests, or spends time creating art. Outside the stable, Amanda finds fulfillment with her sewing and DIY projects with her grandmother, painting and drawing, and spending time with her closest friends and boyfriend. Animals, especially her horse, remain her favourite source of comfort and strength.

Looking ahead, she wants people to understand that a meaningful, joyful life is possible, even when the path looks different. Looking ahead, she dreams of continuing to grow as a rider and using her experiences to inspire others.