“Don’t burn the candle at both ends,” is a phrase that makes me cringe. I can hear my parents, specifically my father, saying this to me at various points in my life. No one who is determined wants to hear they’ve taken on too much. Is it my fault that I have so many passions and big dreams? I always thought those were good personalities traits to hone in on, but ever since I’ve been sick, these traits have gotten me into trouble.
When you first get sick, it takes time to figure out your new life. It’s really overwhelming on both the mind and body, which forces you to reevaluate. Whether you like it or not, your body needs you to adjust and it’s not something you’re going to figure out how to do over night. The same goes for your mind. If you’re someone who has “everything planned out,” then scaling back is something you have to accept and prepare yourself to do.
Meet exhibit A: Myself just a few weeks ago when I started moving. Moving into and setting up an apartment is exhausting for a healthy person, let alone someone who has a chronic illness. Yeah, I know this, but I decided that I NEEDED to get settled in as quickly as possible. This desire led me to spend many very late nights in a row, pushing myself, to do the numerous long drives, paint the walls, moving in and organizing, etc. all by myself. The result? I felt like actual death and it took me a long time to get over the terrible headache cycle I put myself into.
When you get symptoms, your body is telling you that it’s not happy and changes need to be made. It’s not something easy to accept or get through, but it’s possible you may have to switch careers, locations (hence the moving), and overall life style. For me, one of the changes is that I need to slow down and stop overwhelming myself with stress and activities. Everyone and everyone’s bodies are different, so try and be patient with your body and illness when searching for your limits. It may hurt, but you’ll reach them eventually.
All In My Head 