Photo credit: Zuzia Zawada
Finding Happiness, Together
London, United Kingdom
Millie started a support group after struggling to find a safe, gentle space to connect with others who understood, creating a space shaped by lived experience to help people feel less alone.
Why I started this group
I started “Finding Happiness, Together” because I couldn’t find a safe, steady space to simply exist with others who understood, somewhere to talk, share, ask questions, and feel less alone. In a world full of uncertainty, I wanted to create a place with warmth, consistency, and connection. It became about building the space I never had when I needed it most.
What the group offers
“Finding Happiness, Together” is a virtual support group I lead from Berkshire, UK, open to people worldwide with EDS, HSD, and related conditions. It offers a gentle, honest space shaped by lived experience to share coping strategies, hold the hard days and small wins, and build connection, with many members aged 18 to 40, while remaining open to anyone drawn to the heart of the space.
Impact on the community
I’ve seen people arrive quietly to their first session, unsure if they belong, and slowly find their voice as they realise they are understood here. Members share what has helped them through flare-ups, long waits for care, and the emotional grief that comes with changing bodies, and those shared moments have grown into real friendships. The group has become a place of steadiness in a life that often feels uncertain.
What it has meant to me
Leading this group has given me purpose at times where illness has taken so much. It has offered me a way to turn pain into something meaningful, by building the space I once needed. Creating this community has helped turn pain into something meaningful.
Advice for others
Begin where you are, not where you think you should be. Lead with care, honesty, and boundaries, and trust that the rest can grow in time. A safe space is created through presence and consistency, not having all the answers.
“Finding Happiness, Together” is a gentle, monthly online support group created to support people living with Ehlers-Danlos syndromes (EDS), hypermobility spectrum disorders (HSD), and other chronic illnesses.
