But she was actually in a lot of pain. “One of my hips felt totally broken.” It’s the struggle she faces having an ‘invisible’ disability - one that impacts a person's life but can not be easily seen or understood by the public and sometimes even by friends and family. Invisible illness or disability affects thousands of Australians. Many of them have been told "but you don't look sick". A NSW campaign launched last December called #thinkoutsidethechair encouraged people "to see beyond the chair because not all disabilities are visible".

People living with an invisible disability shared with The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald what it was like to have people misunderstand and dismiss their pain. 'You feel like you've done something wrong' Katherine Marshall, 29, has a rare chronic illness that damaged her internal organs. She has given up using public transport after repeatedly being asked to stand up on a train or prove that she had a disability. "It makes you feel really isolated and like you've done something wrong," she said.

If she was feeling anxious, she'd stand to avoid an argument. It was never with other people who needed accessible seating, it was bystanders. "I'd faint, or get off and lie on the footpath - because at least I didn't have anyone criticising me," she said. "You can choose between doing what's right for you and being abused or judged for it, or ignoring your health needs so you don't get that kind of abuse." Disability Resource Centre executive officer Kerri Cassidy, who has multiple sclerosis, said disabled people often avoided using public transport rather than risk an altercation, abuse or having to explain themselves. In November last year, the Centre released the Transport for All report.

"We talked about issues relating to people with invisible disabilities around access to seating on public transport," she said. One in five Australians have a disability and one in six people with disability have trouble accessing public transport because of their disability, according to The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Ms Marshall has also been stung by social stigma. She's had the validity of her disability and her need for government benefits and accessibility requirements questioned by friends. "I used to have an accessible parking permit - I was abused more times than I can count. I had people scream at me outside my car, 'where is your disabled person? Get out of this car space, what the hell are you doing?' It's horrible," she said. 'The pain may be in your head'

Holly Phelan has endometriosis and says she has experienced stigma because she has an invisible condition. Credit:Nicole Precel Holly Phelan, 26, has endometriosis and for years doctors told her "you know this pain may be in your head". Endometriosis occurs when cells in the uterus are found elsewhere in the body. It can only be correctly diagnosed through surgical intervention. Since Ms Phelan was diagnosed at 19, she's had five operations in six years. She had to defer university because of constant pain, nausea and vomiting. She once had a period for 21 days. Her illness has affected every part of her life, she says, including her work. She has lost friends who didn't believe she was sick.

Endometriosis Australia director and co-founder Donna Ciccia said the stigma for people with endometriosis was so great that many didn't want to identify themselves for fear of discrimination by their employers. 'It's not laziness' Louise De Pino has had MECFS since she was a teenager, and says it has greatly affected her life. Credit:Nicole Precel Life for Louise De Pino, who has Myalgic Encephalomyelitis also known as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, has been severely affected by her condition. "When it comes to illness and disability, it's very much about what you can see, how sick you look," she said.

Her condition has sometimes rendered her unable to do tasks such as eat, or go to the bathroom by herself. She has had a disability parking permit and sometimes a wheelchair. Ms De Pino said especially with MECFS, the word "laziness" was bandied around. "I think that's a very big stigma that is placed on a lot of people with invisible disabilities, because you can’t make another person feel what you're feeling." "It's the pain or what you may be going through on the inside." She has encountered stigma not only from friends who do not understand, from drivers who have seen her with a disabled parking sticker, but from doctors during her diagnosis.

'I wasn't drunk, I needed help' Jeremy Drake has Meniere's disease and understands the complexities of living with an invisible condition. Credit:Nicole Precel Jeremy Drake was diagnosed at 31 with Meniere's disease, but had his first attack at 18. Meniere's disease is a rare disorder of the inner ear that causes vertigo, dizziness and balance problems. When he was 31, a sudden vertigo attack had him clutching at the walls in the morning, and instead of people helping him, they walked past. "I wasn't some drunk person at 10am stumbling, I was just a normal person who actually needed help," he said.

Mr Drake said most people understand what cancer is and how that can affect someone, but that's not the case for his condition. "Some days you do have really good days and some days are really hard," he said. "All we want is probably just some understanding."