Learning to Cope (Realistically)

My husband had surgery to repair an old hernia repair. Scar tissue build up was causing him misery. They went in, removed the old plug and cleaned up a mess of scar tissue. Modern/less intrusive mesh was inserted and a couple nerves snipped and buried in muscle tissue. This time he is taking time to heal and being proactive in his recovery. On the recommendation of a friend (my one and only reader) we contacted a masseuse who is experienced working with scars. She's now been out to work with him a couple of times. She's taking it easy on the scar, but helping both of us to understand connective tissue and how important it is to pay attention to the entire body even when attending to one particular problem area. Happily, she has my hubby considering how to adjust his work patterns to minimize a host of physical pains he has been dealing with for years. Just listening to her describe how a single issue can impact many other areas of one's body (and life) I was motivated to take action.

I decided to "celebrate what's right with the world" (to infringe on a trademark) and quit self-imposing barriers to a healthy life. Monday, while eating too big a lunch at a local restaurant, I saw an article about a free Pathways to Health workshop that assists with dealing with chronic conditions. There were 8 or 10 examples given of chronic conditions. When I got to the 3rd one I have (obesity, high blood pressure, anxiety) I decided I was going to sign up. I did.

Just signing up for the workshop motivated me to visit Curves to try it out for a week. I was previously a member of Curves but my branch closed last year when the economy went south. I hadn't been attending regularly anyway so I opted not to transfer to a different branch. I don't find Curves to be a vigorous workout. However, after just one work-out on Tuesday, I was reminded that I do find the work-out increases my energy and stamina and decreases stiffness and pain. (Why did I quit going?)

Yesterday I attended a meeting on that on-line class I'm developing. I arrived with a list of my course lecture topics that I'd sat down and put together after deciding I was done wallowing. I'm back on track. I also attended my first of 6 Pathways to Health sessions. We identified our chronic conditions and discussed their impacts on our lives. We then made a discrete, achievable action plan for the week. Mine is to attend Curves at least 3 times this week, in the morning for at least 30 minutes each time. We had to assess what we thought our chances of success are. If they are not at least a 7 out of 10, then the plan is probably not a realistic one and we should reconsider our plan. My estimate was 9.5. I'm doing this!

By the evening, I was sick. The cold my husband had begun complaining about the day before finally hit me. I felt tired. I sneezed. My nose started running. I went to bed by 11 (early for me). I got up this morning and found that although I do have a bit of a cold, I wasn't particularly symptomatic. Last week I would have played it safe and stayed home. This week, I went to Curves! First day of the rest of my life!