Have you ever had a rough day, week, or month, when everything seems hopeless, sad, frustrating or with no possible solution, when suddenly, just like magic, answers appear out of nowhere, or your outlook is somehow brighter? That is the beauty of life – if we learn to navigate through the difficult times/moments, remain hopeful, and open ourselves to new opportunities, there is ALWAYS a light at the end of the tunnel.
Challenges WILL happen to ALL of us, and the key lies in learning how to surf the challenging waves, and keep going forward, allowing our mind, heart, and soul to be open and to receive what (or who) comes our way. Sometimes the difference between one day or another seems like night and day and all we need is to “sleep on it.” Other times, obstacles are bigger and take longer to get through, but the good news is that there is always hope, there is always a solution, and calm after the storm. Moreover, there are things that we can do to shorten the time of our pain and suffering. My hope is that by reading my blog you will get some tips, ideas, answers, direction, guidance which might help you have a BREAKTHROUGH sooner, and find yourself in a much better, happier, and more successful place than where you were before.
There are 2 perfect examples of despair turning into hope which were highlighted in my life this week; I will begin with the one that somehow affected all of us who live in Florida and only lasted a few days. About a week ago, it was all over the news: Hurricane Milton was approaching Florida’s West Coast, and the damage could be catastrophic. As time went by, so did fear and worry, and people began to make the important decision of staying or evacuating.
“One of the strongest hurricanes in history,” “it will undoubtedly cause serious damage,” “expect the worst” …where just a few of the comments made on national news. Everyone was waiting anxiously and nervously for it to hit land. Not only was it going to be shattering our state on the west coast, but it would be causing much damage as it travelled to exit on the east coast, affecting some of the same areas that had endured major destruction the week before when hurricane Helene made landfall. There was an earie calmness in the air, but we all knew that this stillness was about to end in a few hours, and no one could predict whether their lives would drastically change.
It was especially nerve wracking for us as its track indicated that the center of its eye would hit Bradenton, where my daughter lives. She had evacuated along with pets the day before, and travelled to Miami to stay with us – a less dangerous place. We kept repeating to ourselves that what mattered was that she was safe, but we knew how devastating it would be for her to lose her home and/or job, and both were a real possibility. On top of that, there were some models which indicated it would cause damage in our area as well. We watched the news for hours and hours, and finally decided to go to bed about 3am, and do all that was now under our control: pray.
When I woke up the next day, I turned the news on right away and saw all the images of utter devastation on the west coast, especially where my daughter lives: streets were flooded, homes destroyed, power lines down, and tornadoes had formed across the state (including one that had passed a few hours before I woke up and hit about 10 miles from our home) – could not believe the images; it was all surreal.
My daughter was especially calm; I asked her if she was OK and she said “there is nothing we can do, it is completely out of our control, and no matter what, we can rebuild – and, we are safe. I am just worried about my boyfriend; his whole world as he knew it could be gone, and he is not taking it well.” He grew up in that area and his family home is there. He also had several close friends who had decided not to evacuate, despite being asked to do so. My daughter was right, and I felt such pride for the mature and reasonable young lady she had become. At this point, all we could do was wait until more information came in. I decided to go for a jog, to clear my mind and calm my nerves. Ever since my divorce, jogging became my best therapy for stress. I never liked it growing up, as it was a punishment used during my gymnastics training, but when my whole world had collapsed, I had to do something, and I decided to go outside to breathe; I began walking, and before I knew it, I was jogging and all my emotions were processing. I became so much calmer and felt a lot better after a run. Before I knew it, running had become my way of releasing stress, calming my mind and spirit, and sometimes, coming up with great answers to my problems. So, going out for a walk/jog seemed to be the best thing to do…
Besides a few branches and some tree trunks on the road and sidewalk, there was very little damage in our area. The sun was shining, birds were chirping, there was a great energy in the air. We had survived the storm, our home did not have any damage, we were all OK, and everyone was going about their day as usual. The day before, we were expecting the worst, but today, there was hope in the air, and getting out to see all of this helped tremendously. We still had no answers regarding damage near my daughter’s home, but no matter what, we were fine and everything else would be fixed.
A few hours later, we heard that besides having lost electricity and water, and many areas still flooded, my daughter’s apartment and her boyfriend’s family home were OK from the outside! THANK GOD!!! The day before all seemed dark and devastating, but today, we could breathe!! Despite inconveniences and minor challenges, we were all alive, hopeful, relieved, and with a heart full of gratitude. Our hearts still hurt for all those who lost lives, homes, pets, jobs…and we continue to have them in our thoughts and prayers. But we are so incredibly grateful that we were given another day – a beautiful, sunny day surrounded by the people we love. FROM DARKNESS TO LIGHT… just like that, everything can turn around.
The other example of clear breakthrough that I want to share is the health condition I have been dealing with – 10 weeks ago, I went from feeling completely normal, to one day leaving work at the hospital, and falling as I lost control of my body. I was walking in the hallway around 2am, thinking about what I needed to do the next day, when suddenly, I found myself falling to the side, losing control of my arms and legs. I could feel and see everything happening (completely aware), but had no control – thankfully my body caught the handrail in the hallway. The floor looked uneven for a few seconds, as I was trying to decide what to do. There was no one around and I didn’t know if it was going to happen again. After about a minute, I felt completely normal – except the fear and worry about what could be happening.
A few days later, I began having neuropathy in different body parts, on and off, and feeling pressure in my head. In the days and weeks that followed, my body did not feel normal. Sometimes my body felt like it did not belong to me, and it was so hard to concentrate especially at work, doing simple things that I do every day. If I tried to jog my head felt it was going to explode (just pressure), and I had 2 more episodes of going sideways (no fall, just my balance was off). When I closed my eyes, I felt like I was on a boat in the middle of the ocean… I did not have my new doctors as my insurance had changed when I got a new job a year ago, and the only doctor appointment I had was with my new rheumatologist – thank God as I felt this was most likely my lupus attacking my Central Nervous System, as it had about 10 years ago, but she was not certain albeit very concerned, and she sent me to see a neurologist as she thought it might be early Multiple Sclerosis… and if any falls happened again, I was instructed to go to the ER immediately.
Well, it happened again, and after 2 days in the hospital, and multiple specialist appointments, medical tests and procedures to come – still no answer although most likely it is lupus acting strangely and affecting the vascular system of my brain/central nervous system. At least that seems to be where the answers are pointing…another serious situation which causes fear, worry, stress and uncertainty, just like the hurricane, and this time, I could not do what helps me the most – jogging. I don’t know what will happen down the road, but I do happen to know that today, I felt back to normal and this flareup seems to be on its way out – a few more “normal” days.. Today, I felt happy and optimistic. Today, will be a great day, and for that, I am thankful. No one has tomorrow promised, but if we are here, today, it is a gift full of promise and opportunities, and today, we have a choice: feeling sorry for ourselves, feeling like a victim, OR, feeling grateful, and making the best of it, choosing to believe that everything will get better. I promise, doing the latter is MUCH more helpful, and it leads to happiness.
After living with lupus most of my life, and overcoming many serious challenges, I have learned 3 VALUABLE LESSONS that have led me to a much happier place, and want to share with you:
- Stress makes everything worse; it causes internal and external damage, and it does not do a single positive thing for us. It is a normal reaction that we all have, but one that we can learn to control and diminish – what works best for me is exercise (especially going for a walk/jog/run), breathing and yes, meditation (I am a newbie with the latter- I have never liked it, but after learning about the scientifically proven results obtained with meditation – it is a must). Try all 3 and you will see immediate results!!!
- Some things are under our control, and many are not. Try to ignore/avoid/minimize those which are not under our control, and focus on what YOU can do to improve. Control your thoughts, actions, reactions to situations, and not on what others do. When faced with a certain situation, ask yourself “is it under my control?” if not, not your problem! If it is, write down possibilities, options, suggestions and begin working on them.
- THERE IS ALWAYS CALM AND LIGHT AFTER THE STORM. So, hang on tight knowing that this bad situation will pass, and either you will figure out a solution to your problem, or, God/Universe will send you a different path/solution (which most of the time ends up being MUCH GREATER than the one you had envisioned). Keep moving forward, one day at a time, because the light at the end of the tunnel will get brighter and brighter, and once you are out… MAGIC!
Today, after 10 weeks of not being in a good place physically (and yes, emotionally at times), I was able to go out for a jog feeling normal, and this lupus flare (or whatever it is) seems to be on its way out… I can see the light, and I cannot wait… I HAVE GREAT PLANS!
Thank you for reading, thank you for your trust, and for being part of my journey. I truly hope that by sharing what I have learned and what I continue to learn, you will find a way to have your own breakthrough and have the happiness and success you always wished for!
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