I have been struggling with my physical health a little of late. Working through a diagnosis takes times and I am not the most patient of people. More so though I have noticed I am increasingly worried about the future. I can take the pain of my recent symptoms but some times I am losing mobility in my hand and knee. I know in the back of my mind I worry, what if one day I won’t be able to write. What if this stops me enjoying things with the family. But as my mind often does it offered me an epiphany the other day.

“Until I can’t, I can!”

Seams like a small and obvious realisation but sometimes it is the understanding and belief that comes with these ideas which really impacts.

I haven spoken to so many inspiring people this week. People who live with debilitating life long illness and who have talked about reclaiming their disability. People who have struggled through hospital stays and near death illness but talk about how they don’t let their illness dictate their life.

All made me starkly aware that I have benefited from decades of good health and even now I am very lucky. If they can overcome their challenges, then living with the uncertainty of mine should be easy. I mean none of us know what the future holds. I am not going to worry about what might be.

I am just going to learn and adapt to what’s in front of me now. And that is very achievable. So here are my three top tips for dealing with uncertainty and a changing health dynamic.

Count the blessings.

Gratitude practice is something we can always benefit from nurturing. Sometimes though the things to be grateful for aren’t always obviously or at the front of our minds. If we can take time to list out some of the things we have to be grateful for it can help frame positive thinking.

• A supportive family or friends
• A home
• A job
• Your senses
• You ability to comprehend the world

Which of these might apply to us. If none of them do, what could be your points of gratitude.

Adapt to the now

If we try to consider the long term with all its uncertainty it can quickly be overwhelming. Consider here and now. What changes could we make which would help now. Recognising our ability to adapt and learn can help build our confidence that we can grow and adapt in the future.

• Could we benefit from some adaptions like a bar in the shower, or rail by the steps.
• Or perhaps adjusting our calendars to allow for more down time in the week.
• Could we start adapting our working patterns or consider a change of job to something less physically demanding.

Adapting can be scary, look for small manageable changes at first.

Try to stop measuring.

This one is really tricky but really beneficial. Try to recognise when we are measuring ourselves, perhaps against someone else, perhaps against what we could accomplish yesterday. Be kind to ourselves and try to stop the comparative thinking. Instead if we must measure, measure ourselves against being able to achieve or do nothing. Somedays getting up and dressed is an accomplishment we should be proud of.

health #disability #amazinghumans #ican