A Weird Thank You to the Universe

Image by Chris Blakeley via Flickr

On the suggestion of one of my friends, I signed up for this daily email called Notes from the Universe. The other day I got this note:

When something difficult or painful happens, Selena, always look to see what it makes possible that wouldn't have otherwise been possible.

Like a new adventure, a closer friendship, or chocolate in your peanut butter.

Everything makes you better,

The Universe

O.K., so first I chuckled and then I thought. You know what? I actually came up with a list of things that are part of my life now because I became disabled by my chronic illnesses, thus proving the adage When one door closes, another opens. So here are my new open doors, courtesy of my life with chronic illness:

1. Container gardening.
2. Writing and blogging.
3. Freedom from the demon 'multi-tasking.'
4. Bird watching.
5. Owning a dog.
6. Turning a feral kitten into a house cat.
   
7. Knifty (loom) knitting.
8. Watching all the great programming on PBS.
   
9. Enrolling in a writing class.
10. Attending a book group.

Oh, and I have also met and/or reconnected with some very interesting people in the past 5 and 1/2 years too. People I might not have had the pleasure to meet and interact with if I was busy, busy, busy living my old life. Some important people too, who educated me about the need for ongoing medical follow-up because I am a long-term cancer survivor.

It is with the benefit of time that I can see the new possibilities my difficult and painful new life with chronic illness has brought me. So thank you, Universe, for the new opportunities. Who knows how many more discoveries I will make!

I'm Not Afraid of Halloween Anymore

Image via Wikipedia

As a fibromyalgia scientist, I discovered how to enjoy Halloween again.  My secret: I assembled a team of ghouls and put them to work helping me decorating, preparing, setting up and handing out candy.  I first tried this method last year and enjoyed Halloween again after a four year absence of participating in the neighborhood celebration.  I learned from last year's experience and tweaked and refined the process for this year.  Today, in addition to getting everything ready and completing last minute preparations, I am scheduling in some rest time to bolster me through the evening.

I will be tired tonight and I will need to schedule extra rest and recovery time next week, but being a part of life in my neighborhood and sharing the fun and festivities with my family and friends makes it worth it.  I reap the benefits of being a fibromyalgia scientist and sometimes it is scary good.  This is the goal of my efforts to learn to live my best life despite chronic illness.   

Chronic Illness Will Be a Part of All My Tomorrows

Image by ecstaticist via Flickr

Back at the beginning of 2008, I realized that I had lived over three years with illnesses that were not getting any "better." At that point in time, I chose to accept that I had chronic illnesses and disabilities that would be part of my life indefinitely. I chose to reframe the way I viewed my health problems: instead of seeing them as something that could be "cured" and "fixed," I embraced the notion that they needed to be managed. I took responsibility and determined that my chronic illnesses need to be managed not by a doctor, but by me. I decided to accept that, at least for the foreseeable future, living with chronic illness would be a part of all my tomorrows.

Thus began my quest to obtain quality of life, the good, the bad and the ridiculous. Or, as I have come to see it, my mission to live my best life despite chronic illness. I began my mission by reintroduce fun, enjoyment and interesting pursuits back into my life. While there were definitely a few things I could no longer do, I found that some of my old pastimes just needed to be revamped to become fibro-friendly. I also discovered new pursuits that nicely filled the gaps left by those old pastimes I sadly needed to leave behind.

I continue to be amazed how making this switch has changed my whole outlook and attitude about my life with chronic illness. In short, I think I've changed my life for the better and other people seem to notice it. "Are you feeling better?" is the question I often am asked. I know most people want a yes or no response, but "yes" or "no" don't really answer this question. The bottom line is I still have a significant amount of chronic pain and chronic fatigue every day. The bottom line is that I am still disabled. But what I think I have accomplished is to offset some of my chronic pain and chronic fatigue with joy-inducing, life-sustaining and stress-reducing activities. The net result is a more balanced life and a person who looks a bit less in pain, a little bit less tired and a little bit more happy, a little bit more content on the outside.

I truly enjoy my accomplishments, however lately I'm beginning to feel like I need to add another component onto what I have already achieved. I feel it is time and I am ready to build upon my successes. After all, life is all about growing and changing. It's time to add more things set aside and forgotten back into my life and I'll discuss this further in my blog post tomorrow.

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