In Sickness: What I've Learned

Pardon me. I was sick for the entirety of February, going through buckets of  lozenges, teas, juicing concoctions, and tissues.

It started like this:

I had my wisdom teeth removed on the first of February.

And then I fell on a big patch of ice, and had trouble walking.

I caught a cold.

Then my sinuses began acting up.

Finally, at the end of the month, I said, ''Enough!" and went to the doctor.

Where he told me that I had walking pneumonia.

...Where I asked him (without telling him that my thighs felt sad for the lack of exercise) when I could begin running and being active again.

The truth is, I hope that I never lose an entire month again. But in all honesty, without sounding too melodramatic or cheesy, I know that my cold/ice fall/walking pneumonia is really nothing. But the whole experience of being stuck inside and losing working time really makes you think.

1. Rest

It's so easy to get caught up in a schedule and become somewhat robotic and mechanical. I definitely tired myself out in the past year. Taking on too many things and not truly enjoying/appreciating what I was doing. Being in bed for a month was rather clarifying. Rest is so underrated, and sososo important. Hopefully, incorporating more regular rest will help me to avoid another February like this year.

2. Trust

Financially, we didn't have the best month. Brett took time off of work to be with me while I was in the throes of a three day fever. I worked all of one day in between my cold and walking pneumonia. Our bank account was sparse for a couple of weeks, but at the end of the day, I'm sitting here at a computer typing this. We're fine. I think it's important to remember to trust in whatever you believe in. It's so easy to say that you do, but do you? Rather than allow stress to overrun my mind with worry, I found it a whole lot easier to just be, and to just trust.

3. Just Be

For me, this means regular yoga practice, which I haven't been doing enough of. Whatever it means for you, do it. Spending time with yourself in a meditative state is so rejuvenating. I can't even describe how I feel after I practice yoga. Actually, I'll try. I feel like all my insides (including my brain) have been massaged and rung out, like a towel. I feel like I'm more quiet and more focused. I feel more present and aware. I'm calm. It's just an all around lovely feeling, and it's worth a shot if you've never tried it. It's also great because it's totally doable even if you're feeling slightly under the weather. Stretching is actually really helpful when you're not feeling well, so there's another reason to try it!

Disclaimer: I'm no yogi, and you will not see me practicing outdoors, alone, sans DVD. Although, one day, I hope that I will be able to pull that off. Until then, one of my favorite DVD's is Hemalayaa's Yoga for Young Bodies.

I hope you feel better,