My fiance loves the show Two and a Half Men. So ever since Charlie Sheen went on this "winning" spree, my fiance and some other people that we know tend to shout out "winning" whenever something good happens. This got me thinking about winning and what it means to an IC patient.
IC and pelvic pain can make a person lose a lot: lose the ability to do certain activities, lose a job, lose a relationship, lose hope. IC patients lose battles with doctors who are not compassionate. IC patients can lose hours that could be spent on something productive or fun crying and curled up in a ball in pain. But as much as IC can make us lose, IC can not take away our spirit to live.
Some days just getting out of bed is winning. There are definitely times when I am in so much pain I want to spend the day curled up under blankets hiding from the world, but I know this is not realistic all the time. I am 27 and hiding in a ball for another 50 years or more doesn't seem like much of a life---so I win when I get up anyway. I win when I keep going. For non-chronic pain people, getting up and moving is a natural part of the day. For people with chronic pain, it is a choice and making that choice is winning.
A lot of people may take things in life for granted. To some people winning may be defined as being the best at something. There are others who may define winning as being super rich or super famous. I simply define winning as being the best me I can be.
Every time I have a pain free hour I consider it winning. Every time I am in pain but find a way to accomplish tasks anyway I consider it winning. Winning is when you spend an afternoon being able to play with your children. Winning is when you are in pain and a loved one brings you a heating pillow or an ice pack without you having to ask. Winning is finding ways to modify your life so that you can enjoy it despite IC's symptoms.
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3 comments:
What a great post! I can't work and don't do much all day...many days just making a sandwich is hard to do. Even though I try my hardest everyday, I still feel like a loser. This post is just what I needed!
I posted a comment, but it hasn't shown up, so this is simply a repeat.
What a great post!! There are so many days when ALL that i can do is roll out of bed...but I cant shower or anything because i'm in so much pain and fatigue. I feel like a failure even though I give it my all every single day. And that, thanks to this post, reminds me is enough =)
Aw glad it helped. Sorry about the late comment showing up, I was behind on comment moderation.
I always moderate comments only to weed out spammers or people who will flat out make fun of someone. I will still post comments if someone disagrees with me, but I just make sure that no one is flat out making fun of chronic pain or another poster.
You are the best you that you can be : ) And in the end that is all that matters.
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