People don't believe/understand what they can't see. I stopped talking to one friend whose questions about my health were so insistent and so probing that it was clear she didn't believe I was in pain. I actually thought about printing out my medical records to show her. I also get "but you can walk (or in my case, hike) and yes, I can. The pain is in my torso. I don't walk on my torso. But both my feet are numb and it makes it very hard to do those things. I just push through it, slow way down, and try not to cry.