Melissa Boudreau had gone into a CVS to grab some snacks. Instead, she ended up in the store’s restroom where she collapsed, her skin clammy and pulse beating in her ears as she tried to stay conscious.
I crawled to my car, curled up in the driver’s seat, and sobbed as the pain roared through my abdomen like fire and broken glass. I was sixteen. I looked healthy. I seemed fine, but I wasn’t. The pain had been with me for years, but never like this.
Those are a few of the opening lines in Boudreau’s new book, Grateful Anyway: A Memoir of Small Wins and Chronic Illness. The southeast Michigan resident’s story has been evolving since her endometriosis symptoms began when she was 14. She’s undergone seven surgeries for the disease, the most recent being a hysterectomy in 2020.
“I have ups and downs, but I’m a lot better than anytime before,” she said. “I still go through flare-ups, but it’s not as bad as it was, for sure.”
Soon after that last surgery, Boudreau started thinking of authoring a book about living with chronic illness. She also has Hashimoto’s disease, an autoimmune condition that attacks the thyroid. Most of the memoir, however, focuses on more than three decades with endometriosis.
“It’s a memoir of small wins, a chronological history of what I’ve been through with a positive perspective,” Boudreau said. “Even though it’s been incredibly challenging, I always try to find the little wins and the things to be grateful for. I hope it can help other people who are going through chronic illnesses, but I also think it can be bigger than that. It’s for anyone going through any life challenge.”
Grateful Anyway is an extension of Boudreau’s years of endometriosis advocacy. Her resume includes volunteering on EndoFound’s patient advisory board, serving as the foundation’s marketing director in the early 2020s, organizing several fundraisers in the Detroit area for EndoFound, and hosting a podcast called “The Cycle.” She often finds her work for others also helps herself.
“Writing the book was cathartic and healing in a way,” Boudreau said. “I knew how much I went through and how hard it was to overcome the challenges, but to sit down and write it? There were times when I cried, and there were times when I said, ‘Wow! I can’t believe I went through that,’ feeling proud of myself. I really tried to capture everything I could.”
Boudreau penned journals throughout her endometriosis journey and used them to help her recall specifics of her physical, mental, and emotional health. That approach has resonated with readers since the book hit shelves last month.
“Reading this book felt like a warm hug from a friend… It made me feel truly seen,” noted one reviewer on Amazon. “Melissa’s story is one that will feel so very familiar to many of us. The parallels to my own experience were striking, and the path she describes mirrors that of countless others navigating Endo and other chronic illnesses.”
Boudreau ends the book with a powerful letter to readers.
“I just try to convey a few things in the letter that helped me,” Boudreau said. “One is to listen to your body, and another is to know that you’re never alone. You may feel isolated going through this, but others feel the same way, and there are people who can support you. Another, of course, is choosing to be grateful and finding the good, even if it’s hard. We’re all imperfect and go through really tough times, and there were times when I didn’t follow that advice, but I learned there are things we can find to give us a better perspective.
“I just hope this book helps someone,” Boudreau concluded. “I hope people enjoy it and that it makes a difference in someone’s life.”
Grateful Anyway: A Memoir of Small Wins and Chronic Illness is available for purchase here.
