Lyme Life ~ Happy Monday

It can be hard to say, “Happy Monday” or any other Happy Day with Lyme, at least when it the most intense.

Happy Monday!

There have been lots of Mondays that I would only hope to have been able to say that. I am getting so much better. I’ve been telling everyone, especially myself, that I am getting better and stronger every day. Even when I didn’t feel it,I said it. Which was most of the last two years. I’d been undiagnosed for thirty or so.

Lyme Disease symptoms seem so random. It is difficult to correlate triggers, symptoms, and resolutions with certainty. It’s an overwhelming guessing game that consumes massive energy and time, not to mention money.

Treatments are as intricate and unique as the human beings infected with Lyme and the wide variety of tick borne co-infections. We all have to find our own protocols. Thankfully there are quite a few forums around to share ideas and suggestions. For a long time, I tried to push through life, reducing only the hardest work. To my dismay, this was a failing strategy. Once I decided to take a 9 month sabbatical and just focus on getting well, I kept a journal. During that time, I wrote how I felt, what activity I’d been able to do, and what meds and foods I’d taken. I saw some patterns and began working on taking control as much as possible.

I didn’t move during the worst months. The pain was so bad. To rate 0-10, 0 being no pain and 10 being the worst I could imagine, I often fell between 7 and 9. I’ve been through natural childbirth. I know pain. Lyme pain is horrible. My doctor sternly warned me that I needed to move. So through many tears, I began.

Found my Fight Song

George Dennehy produced some original music that I have been using as a kind of therapy. I move like T’ai Chi Chih in a state of worshipfulness to his CD.

One song, in particular, comes on at about 3o minutes in. He admonishes us to recognize that, no matter who you are, life is a gift. It’s all a gift. He sings that life can be hard, but we push through because it’s worth it.

This coincides with the latter part of my workout. I’m usually pretty tired by then and often my joints hurt. For many months, it would be at about that time that I would really want to throw in the towel. Even though my movements were slow and mostly worked on balance and breathing, I saw progress.

You would probably be surprised that it could be a fight song. It’s not a Rocky soundtrack but it’s working for me.

What’s your fight song? Do you have one? Some motivation that is stronger than your pain and more powerful than the disease…

If you don’t have one, I hope you’ll find one. Lyme is horrible, but I hope you can find the fight song that helps pull you through to the other side. You may see a new normal, but don’t stay in the depths of despair.

Life is worth it. You are worth it. Keep telling yourself that you’re getting better, even when you don’t feel it. Always keep looking for stories of others who have come out of the darkest parts. Keep looking for ways to heal, restore, strengthen, and overcome. Try to say, “Happy Monday!”

Find your fight song.

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