#19 Coming Back to Life

One way I’ve been able to put my journey to wellness into words is by calling the process Coming Back to Life.  I literally watched my body come back to life. It was a freaking miracle.  I was in bed for five months.  I lost lots of muscle mass. And I was so weak from treatments and the effects of treatments, that I had to be wheeled each day to the hospital for my treatments.  I needed help to shower and get dressed, and on a good day, could just make it to the bathroom just in time. When treatments ended, before I knew it, I was able to walk to the end of the driveway without any help and I knew one day, I'd be strong enough to bring the garbage cans back into the garage. This was HUGE!  Never could I have imagined something so mundane would bring me such joy.  Would make me feel like I was on top of the world. A job so routine would never again be taken for granted.

The walk to the end of the driveway led to an arm-in-arm walk with my Mom to the cul-de-sac behind our home.  I never quite made it, but the mere fact that I was able to attempt it was a feat in itself.  I was psyched!  I was wiped out, but I was psyched.  The All Will Be Well mantra I continually repeated to myself was slowly becoming a reality. Before I knew it, the garbage cans were carried back from the street into the garage, I was driving, and even doing a little shopping!  Life kept getting better and normalcy was within my reach.

There's beauty in coming through one of life’s most trying challenges.  Everything is beautiful.  The rain. The snow. The heat. The cold. Crotchety people.  Screaming children. Bad drivers. Long lines at the store. Wifi that’s down. Flat tires. WHO CARES?!  I’m happy I’m alive to be able to experience it all.  Physically, my body now has some limitations and my choice is to celebrate them rather than complain and be down about the repercussions of my treatments. They certainly beat the alternative.

For me, getting well and getting myself back to work was paramount and a huge part of what I considered to get my life back to normal.  Six weeks after my surgery I returned to work and was more than ready to get back to what I put on hold for five months.  Seven years later here I am; well, still working, and still working on living my best life.  Part IV: Faith...Maintaining Your Wellness is so important to me because it focuses on leaving old habits behind and intentionally choosing wellness in all that you do as you create your new normal.

As each day passes, it’s so easy to fall back into old habits.  What are you eating? How are you eating? When are you eating? How often are you eating? Are you setting a bedtime? Are you getting enough sleep? Are you prepared for work the night before? What’s for breakfast? Lunch? Dinner? What’s in the fridge? the cabinets? Who are you spending your time with? Are they bringing out the very best in you?  Have you exercised today? How often this week? How about mediation? Walking? Yoga? Have you reached out to your family? Friends? Your children? What am I reading? How will it benefit me and my life? What am I watching?  What will it add to my world? Are you doing what you love?  Is there anything you need to let go? What is not serving you?  Are you breathing? Are they belly breaths?

These questions continually run through my head.  Not in a crazy way, but in a very conscious and mindful way. For me, maintaining my wellness is so important because I got a second chance. I had lessons I had to learn and at the end of the day, I want to pass the test.  I want to do life the best way I know how.  I have faith that all will be well and I invite you to do the same. Work on embedding this conscious thought pattern into your day: Calm, cool, smooth, and easy, and enjoy the shift that occurs.