What if I lose my independence? What if I have to move in with my adult kids or my parents? What if no one will care for me? What if they put me in a nursing home? What if I become homeless? What if I lose my mind? What if I die alone? We catastrophize. We imagine the worst. We relive these “what if” scenarios in our imagination, embellishing them each time.
Reality check. Anybody on the planet, including the healthy folks, could become incapacitated at any time by accident or catastrophic health event. The difference is this; our chronic illness invites us to think about it more often. You can change the future by worrying. Here’s how. First, the stress of worrying will make your overall health worse. Second, when you do get to the future, you will get to regret wasting this valuable time worrying.
When you catastrophize, ask yourself what evidence you have. Check in with another person. Take action if you can. Then be about the business of living right now.
1 comment:
I love this post and I took the liberty of including it in the Patients for a Moment blog carnival over at my blog Oh My Aches and Pains! (http://www.ohmyachesandpains.info/2011/07/patients-for-moment-pfam-independence.html) I hope you keep writing and consider submitting your posts to future blog carnivals.
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