We haven’t had a joke in a while, so here’s one:
I’m sitting in a chair in the living room reading a book when my wife calls out to me from another room. “Do you ever get a shooting pain in your chest like someone’s got a voodoo doll of you and is stabbing it?”, she asks.
“No,” I responded.
To which she replies, “How about now?”
Okay, that didn’t really happen, but I bet there’s times when my wife gets pretty tired of putting up with me. I tire too easily during chores, I’m constantly having to take medications, and I suddenly display Myasthenia Gravis symptoms at the most inopportune times. When we go somewhere, I’m constantly having to stop and “get off my legs”. I catch colds way too easily. I can’t do half the things I used to be able to do around the house. To top it off, she has to do most of the heavy lifting.
I feel bad about those things, but most of them are not within my control. Those of us who have Myasthenia Gravis know that it can limit our abilities and change our lifestyles. There’s not much we can do about that. The key, however, is that while MG affects us physically, it doesn’t have to control us mentally or emotionally. We are still fully in charge of how we react to those things outside of our control.
In writing these blogs, I’ve heard from people who have MG who display amazing strength. I also hear from people who have given up. They have fallen into the trap of victimhood. It’s quite easy to fall into that trap. After all, our movement and strength has become limited and we’re no longer capable of doing many of the things we once could do.
Let me give you an example. When I was young, I greatly enjoyed snow skiing. I would go with my friends every chance I got. Life got busy and I gave it up for many years. Now that I’m older, I realize I really miss it. I’d love to do it again, but I know my legs wouldn’t be able to handle two long sticks strapped to my feet. The extra weight is not something my legs would be able to handle and don’t even get me started about the dexterity issues. I’ll never ski again, I know that. I now have a choice. I can either lament the fact that I’m no longer able or I can enjoy the memories I still have from the time I spent skiing when I was younger. I choose to enjoy and appreciate those memories.
When you’re constantly fatigued, your legs no longer work as well as they should, your vision gets blurry, you have trouble talking, you choke when you try to swallow, it’s not fun, but it’s also not the end of the world. It all comes down to how we choose to live our lives. We can wallow in what we’re unable to do or be thankful for all we can still do, and that includes enjoying memories.
Worrying won’t change the outcome; it only steals your present joy. It’s like sitting in a rocking chair; it gives you something to do but gets you nowhere. Why not stop the worrying and focusing on enjoying life? There’s so much around you to enjoy.
Focus on the positive. Enjoy the life that surrounds you. Appreciate all God does for you. If you can do these things, life becomes worth living. Remember: you can’t control the wind, but you can adjust your sails.