I remember telling this to my dad 8 years ago and he still thought of me as just being weak or a hypochondriac. "It's all in your head son!" he would say.
2 years ago he started losing function of his left leg. A very snarky "It's all in your head dad!" was my first response when he started complaining. That was the beginning of his journey into understanding what I've been going through all these years. Today his left leg no longer works and he is also losing function of his right leg. He has abnormalities on his MRIs and EMG/Nerve conduction tests. Even with this, doctors have not been able to diagnose him with anything and all he gets is shrugs. He's extremely frustrated with the US health system and has decided to just give up and wither away instead.
It's nice to finally be validated by my dad, but I wish he didn't have to go through the same experience just to show a little empathy and understanding. I think most of the people in this thread will similarly have an impossible time understanding our predicaments until it affects them the same way.