We’ve talked before about the benefits of being part of a community. It’s a great way to improve your health outcomes. And humans are social creatures by nature (with some exceptions), so we generally like looking for communities we can join. It sounds like a simple way to make life better.
But communities don’t magically spring up on their own, and even once established, that doesn’t mean they’re going to stick around. Building a lasting community takes work. It’s about communication, compromise, and being constantly willing to actively explore what’s going well and what needs to be fixed.
Communities may bring like-minded people together, but that doesn’t mean you’re going to agree on everything. There will always be debates, and sometimes outright arguments. That means you need to make sure that everyone has a chance to have their voice heard, and there’s a fair process to guide the final decision-making.
For things like rare health conditions, the chances of you having a lot in common are even lower. If the only similarity between you and a person who is supposedly part of your community is that you have the same symptoms, that might not be the strongest basis for a lasting relationship. You can be forced into interactions with people you outright can’t stand just because of a shared diagnosis.
A successful community will probably have some ground rules so everyone knows where they stand, but it won’t try to force everyone into conformity. You need to find ways to celebrate and learn from different perspectives while still holding on to that thing that makes you a community in the first place.
Chances are, with the world being as big as it is, the community you are looking for may already exist. You just need to find it, which is where the modern phenomenon of the internet becomes so useful. If it’s not already in existence, you may want to create it yourself. This may seem like more of a challenge, but the internet allows you to reach out and find the people who belong in your group.
As more people join the community, it creates more chances for tensions to form. You need to watch how the community changes and check regularly that it’s still meeting its objectives and that everyone is still being included. Otherwise, it may warp beyond recognition or even collapse.
