LIFE THROWS PROBLEMS IN YOUR WAY

Sometimes life gets complicated and tests your mental wellbeing and strength. This world is full of ups and downs. You never know what life will throw your way. It seems like you solve one problem and another one comes up. When this happens, it's how you handle it that makes all the difference.

Last year I went almost 6 months with a boot on my foot. I went to physical therapy for almost as long. I had foot surgery and got an infection in the surgery site. When I finally healed, I thought my life was back on track. What else could go wrong? Then about 3 months ago, I started having pain in my knee while walking down stairs and in my shoulder each time I moved it. Once again, I was sent back to physical therapy.

After 3 months of therapy, my therapist said I was doing well and I only needed to do one more month. I thought, “Great I'm getting better therapy will be over soon and I will be back to normal.” Then about two weeks ago, life spit in my face and my shoulder started hurting more. My physical therapist suggested I go to the doctor. The doctor suggested I may have an injury and I had to get an x-ray and a MRI.

I started panicking. What if I need surgery? What if I have a serious problem? If I need surgery, how would we pay our bills? Why is God letting this happen to me again? Am I being punished? Wasn't what I went through last year enough? I can't do surgery again. Tears threatened to spill and I swallowed them. Once again I started magnifying the situation. I lay down on my couch as thoughts raced.

When my husband came home, he held my hand and reminded me not to worry about the future. He told me to only worry about the present. He was right. My pain could be something simple, but by worrying about it, I was making it into a huge problem. I decided to try and focus on other stuff, like taking my dog to get her nails cut, Lou taking me to lunch, working on my writing and watching my favorite television show. Keeping my mind busy helped me push my problem aside.

I remembered what my mom told me, God never gives us more then we can handle. This was just another challenge I had to face. A challenge of my strength to face my mental illness. It's only with God's help and my inner determination I can handle what is to come.

Life is never easy and things always go wrong just when we think everything is good. Turning to my husband and friends to remind me of the positive and turning to God for help is what keeps me in the light.