In sickness and in health
Sorry I haven’t blogged in a while, I’ve been a tad poorly with a giant dose of flu, followed by a rather persistent cold during my much needed week off! I feel like I have missed so much of February already I will blink and it will be March! The worse part is I had some really lovely social events planned and missed every single one of them, to say it’s been frustrating doesn’t come close. I don’t do pity parties so most people have assumed I dropped off the face of the earth. However, I am glad to say I’m still standing and having just been out to Box Hill to blow away the cobwebs I feel ready to face the real world again.
One thing I did notice though is just what a difference it can make to your mood. One minute life is swimming along nicely okay you might be a bit tired from time to time but on the whole all is rosy and the next minute your struck down with whatever bug has decided to take over you and half the rest of the population and it feels like a grey cloud has entered your air space and is going nowhere fast! I am normally such a positive person yet here I was questioning everything and struggling to form coherent sentences (okay okay that second part is a normal day for a menopausal Minnie like me). My point is that I didn’t feel well at all in my body but my mood joined in big time. It was like I was stuck in a fog with no way out. I even found some presenters on TV shows too peppy and couldn’t bare to watch. Not like me at all – I am normally always up for a bit of enthusiasm. Fortunately for me I had a few aces up my sleeve and a realisation that I’ve been down this slippery slope before!
A while back one of my clients gave me a little card with the serenity prayer on it and as I lay in bed feeling sorry for myself it served as a great reminder of what I needed to do.
God grant me the Serenity to accept the things I cannot change…
Courage to change the things I can and Wisdom to know the difference…
So I accepted I was ill, accepted I needed a lot of help from my family and accepted, no I wasn’t a burden. I stayed in bed, did nothing but read and watch TV which anyone who knows me will know that this was torture! I went to the doctors twice, got the medication I needed and took the time off work. I am surprised I didn’t turn into soup or orange juice!
After ten days I went back for a couple of days felt fully recovered for a week and then the next lurgy came along only this time I was ready for it and I am glad to say all is back to normal now. So next time you find yourself struggling under a black cloud for whatever reason, remember the serenity prayer, give yourself a break and change the things you can. xx