Hidden Illness'
The following has circled around Facebook for some months now, showing up every so often:
"Hard to explain to someone who has no clue. It's a daily struggle being in pain or feeling sick on the inside while you look fine on the outside. Please put this as your status for at least 1 hour if you or someone you know has an invisible illness (PTSD, Anxiety, Bipolar, Depression, Diabetes, LUPUS, Fibromyalgia,TM, MS, ME, Arthritis, Celiac, Cancer, Heart Disease, Epilepsy, Autism,M.D., A.D.D, A.D.H.D, O.C.C., S.A.D and Phobiasetc.) " Never judge what you don't understand"
As it came back round this week, I was reminded that I've in fact wanted to write a post about some of these things, as I've known a few of them (to put it mildly).
It was about four years ago, that I began to have inexplicable pain in my body, headaches that wouldn't go away (when I'd hardly ever had headaches before), and a profound weariness that pervaded every day.
On top of this, noise just about did me in. The normal sounds of kids hanging out and laughing together became tortuous. Loud sounds felt like someone was hitting me with a belt. Noise left me physically beat up, literally.
I began seeing a massage therapist, and while I found some relief and greater movement of my atrophied arms, I also realized that the pain was over my entire body.
Long story short, I realized that I had Fibromyalgia. In addition to this Rheumatoid Arthritis had developed with pain in virtually every joint in my body.
On top of this I've had Absense Epilepsy since I was nine years old. And mild celiac, eating no wheat for eight years, with severe reactions when I might try a bit.
I was also recently suffering from PSTD in relation to my ex-spouse, and have had low-grade depression for most of my life.
So I've known a few of these things, and I've more to say that we don't often hear about these things. .
There is hope and there is healing, I've known this too.
When I first was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia, I intuitively knew that I was carrying the pain of my marriage in my body. "And why was I doing that anyway?"
I also realized that I was still not honest with myself or others. I'd been working on my own self-knowing for some years already, but Fibromyalgia screamed loud and clear, "You are still lying to yourself and others."
Imagine a board full of nails hammered through, and then the sharp ends pushing up under your skin; this is what fibromyalgia felt to me. My skin hurt all the time.
You see, our bodies will and do manifest the emotional realities of our lives. When we do not face our emotions honestly, our bodies will speak, giving witness to what is going on inside us at the deepest levels.
Internal pain that is not addressed will manifest externally. I guarantee it.
So I began asking myself three hard questions:
"Where am I still lying to myself and others?"
"Why am I carrying the pain of my marriage in my body?"
"How might I eliminate stress from my life?"
Beginning on an even deeper quest for honesty in my inner-most parts, I established and maintained strong 'NO More" to the emotionally debilitating areas of my life. And I established what I called my 'long-term stress reduction plan'.
I also held myself to the 100% responsibility clause.
"Assuming that I am 100% responsible for where I have gotten to today, the dysfunction, the pain in my body, the exhaustion and ill-health... what might I do to change this scenario?"
Try it on for yourself, really try it: 100% responsible. You'll be amazed at the strength and power to make deep and lasting changes in your life.
You see, we are more powerful than we think. Virtually every thing in our lives are there because we said 'yes' at some point in time.
And the problem with statements that I quoted at the start of this post, is that it makes the person who has these illnesses the victim. I completely agree that it is very hard to live with hidden illness and not look in any way on the outside debilitated. I get that, been there done that.
But there is healing, if we will do the hard work of going after it, of making very hard choices, of becoming increasingly self aware, making a plan and then working the plan.
My own list of hidden illness':
Epilepsy
Fibromyalgia
Rheumatoid Arthritis
Celiac
PSTD
Anxiety
low-grade Depression
Qualified to speak to these things... they need not say the last word. There is healing available.
My epilepsy has been healed through much prayer and continued asking for healing. A 10 year journey of wanting healing bad enough, and today my EEG's show up as 'no absence epilepsy'.
Anxiety I found is nothing more than wanting to control a situation. So when I was suffering from anxiety I learned to ask myself, 'What am I trying to control?" Would track my anxiety back to the cause, the thought, the situation, and would then face head on the worst-case scenario and voila, no need to control, and no anxiety.
Celiac and Rheumatoid Arthritis are connected. And as a special gift God (just this past November) has healed my celiac and with it my Rheumatoid Arthritis is no more. No longer do I have extreme reaction to wheat consumption, and I am enjoying many things I've not eaten for years and years.
Low-grade Depression simply disappeared as I began going after what I want, and what is important to me. As I took risks and grabbed hold of courage in new ways every single year, depression serves me no purpose any longer.
PSTD, was a more recent thing in the wake of the trauma of my marriage. But as I've released last bitterness' and grieved my broken heart, I no longer have PSTD either! Praise the Lord!
Fibromyalgia is the only thing I still deal with occasionally. It may never completely go away, as harm done to our bodies is harm done to our bodies. But as I stay in honesty with myself and with others , "This doesn't work for me." and following through with actions (not just words) the Fibro really has no say, it recedes into the background, impotent to affect any longer.
In addition to the inner healing and honesty work I've also engaged some natural healing avenues, making sure to address the problems from both a physical and emotional aspect.
Simply put: Most of these hidden illness are emotions not dealt with.
Harsh?
For sure! But just think, if I am right, if what I am saying is accurate, that means that those who have these illness', hold the keys, have the power in fact, to their own healing!
No excuses, no victimization, 100% responsibility
"Assuming that I am 100% responsible for where I have gotten to today, the dysfunction, the pain in my body, the exhaustion and ill-health... what might I do to change this scenario?"
Is it hard work? You better believe it! Damned hard. The hardest work a person will ever do is to make right all that is wrong in one's life as witnessed to by these hidden illness'.
Hidden Illness' simply testify to our worlds gone bad... and only we can make that right
"Hard to explain to someone who has no clue. It's a daily struggle being in pain or feeling sick on the inside while you look fine on the outside. Please put this as your status for at least 1 hour if you or someone you know has an invisible illness (PTSD, Anxiety, Bipolar, Depression, Diabetes, LUPUS, Fibromyalgia,TM, MS, ME, Arthritis, Celiac, Cancer, Heart Disease, Epilepsy, Autism,M.D., A.D.D, A.D.H.D, O.C.C., S.A.D and Phobiasetc.) " Never judge what you don't understand"
As it came back round this week, I was reminded that I've in fact wanted to write a post about some of these things, as I've known a few of them (to put it mildly).
It was about four years ago, that I began to have inexplicable pain in my body, headaches that wouldn't go away (when I'd hardly ever had headaches before), and a profound weariness that pervaded every day.
On top of this, noise just about did me in. The normal sounds of kids hanging out and laughing together became tortuous. Loud sounds felt like someone was hitting me with a belt. Noise left me physically beat up, literally.
I began seeing a massage therapist, and while I found some relief and greater movement of my atrophied arms, I also realized that the pain was over my entire body.
Long story short, I realized that I had Fibromyalgia. In addition to this Rheumatoid Arthritis had developed with pain in virtually every joint in my body.
On top of this I've had Absense Epilepsy since I was nine years old. And mild celiac, eating no wheat for eight years, with severe reactions when I might try a bit.
I was also recently suffering from PSTD in relation to my ex-spouse, and have had low-grade depression for most of my life.
So I've known a few of these things, and I've more to say that we don't often hear about these things. .
There is hope and there is healing, I've known this too.
When I first was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia, I intuitively knew that I was carrying the pain of my marriage in my body. "And why was I doing that anyway?"
I also realized that I was still not honest with myself or others. I'd been working on my own self-knowing for some years already, but Fibromyalgia screamed loud and clear, "You are still lying to yourself and others."
Imagine a board full of nails hammered through, and then the sharp ends pushing up under your skin; this is what fibromyalgia felt to me. My skin hurt all the time.
You see, our bodies will and do manifest the emotional realities of our lives. When we do not face our emotions honestly, our bodies will speak, giving witness to what is going on inside us at the deepest levels.
Internal pain that is not addressed will manifest externally. I guarantee it.
So I began asking myself three hard questions:
"Where am I still lying to myself and others?"
"Why am I carrying the pain of my marriage in my body?"
"How might I eliminate stress from my life?"
Beginning on an even deeper quest for honesty in my inner-most parts, I established and maintained strong 'NO More" to the emotionally debilitating areas of my life. And I established what I called my 'long-term stress reduction plan'.
I also held myself to the 100% responsibility clause.
"Assuming that I am 100% responsible for where I have gotten to today, the dysfunction, the pain in my body, the exhaustion and ill-health... what might I do to change this scenario?"
Try it on for yourself, really try it: 100% responsible. You'll be amazed at the strength and power to make deep and lasting changes in your life.
You see, we are more powerful than we think. Virtually every thing in our lives are there because we said 'yes' at some point in time.
And the problem with statements that I quoted at the start of this post, is that it makes the person who has these illnesses the victim. I completely agree that it is very hard to live with hidden illness and not look in any way on the outside debilitated. I get that, been there done that.
But there is healing, if we will do the hard work of going after it, of making very hard choices, of becoming increasingly self aware, making a plan and then working the plan.
My own list of hidden illness':
Epilepsy
Fibromyalgia
Rheumatoid Arthritis
Celiac
PSTD
Anxiety
low-grade Depression
Qualified to speak to these things... they need not say the last word. There is healing available.
My epilepsy has been healed through much prayer and continued asking for healing. A 10 year journey of wanting healing bad enough, and today my EEG's show up as 'no absence epilepsy'.
Anxiety I found is nothing more than wanting to control a situation. So when I was suffering from anxiety I learned to ask myself, 'What am I trying to control?" Would track my anxiety back to the cause, the thought, the situation, and would then face head on the worst-case scenario and voila, no need to control, and no anxiety.
Celiac and Rheumatoid Arthritis are connected. And as a special gift God (just this past November) has healed my celiac and with it my Rheumatoid Arthritis is no more. No longer do I have extreme reaction to wheat consumption, and I am enjoying many things I've not eaten for years and years.
Low-grade Depression simply disappeared as I began going after what I want, and what is important to me. As I took risks and grabbed hold of courage in new ways every single year, depression serves me no purpose any longer.
PSTD, was a more recent thing in the wake of the trauma of my marriage. But as I've released last bitterness' and grieved my broken heart, I no longer have PSTD either! Praise the Lord!
Fibromyalgia is the only thing I still deal with occasionally. It may never completely go away, as harm done to our bodies is harm done to our bodies. But as I stay in honesty with myself and with others , "This doesn't work for me." and following through with actions (not just words) the Fibro really has no say, it recedes into the background, impotent to affect any longer.
In addition to the inner healing and honesty work I've also engaged some natural healing avenues, making sure to address the problems from both a physical and emotional aspect.
Simply put: Most of these hidden illness are emotions not dealt with.
Harsh?
For sure! But just think, if I am right, if what I am saying is accurate, that means that those who have these illness', hold the keys, have the power in fact, to their own healing!
No excuses, no victimization, 100% responsibility
"Assuming that I am 100% responsible for where I have gotten to today, the dysfunction, the pain in my body, the exhaustion and ill-health... what might I do to change this scenario?"
Is it hard work? You better believe it! Damned hard. The hardest work a person will ever do is to make right all that is wrong in one's life as witnessed to by these hidden illness'.
Hidden Illness' simply testify to our worlds gone bad... and only we can make that right
Posted by Cyndy Lavoie at February 10, 2012 11:40 AM 
Categories: uncategorized
Tags: fibromyalgia rheumatoid arthritis anxiety depression healing health emotional health
Categories: uncategorized
Tags: fibromyalgia rheumatoid arthritis anxiety depression healing health emotional health
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