WARNING: This post contains serious attitude as a result of 10 years of personal experience with chronic pain. The post also contains my personal no nonsense view of living with a chronic illness and (much required) rotten sense of humour, whopping reality check and bonus kick up the backside for anyone who refuses to accept they have a serious health issue.
*Proceed with caution*
Well, surely you can’t blame me for having that kind of attitude after 10 years!
Recently, it dawned on me that when I was diagnosed with chronic pain, it felt like I had been handed a can of worms.
I’ve been mulling over this thought while procrastinating about a second follow-up appointment since my sacral neurostimulator treatment. Specifically, I thought about the time that goes by while I – sometimes neglect to face the intensity of my health issue and what the consequences are as a result of that neglect.
Yep, it translated to a can of worms.
Generally, I’d say I do a great job of my pain management. But I’ll also admit that I get really sick of the daily juggle (as if the health issue’s limitations aren’t enough!).
Do you ever feel like taking a holiday from the relentless thinking and doing of it all?!
Well, you can’t have one and neither can I!
(I warned you!)
If you’ve been diagnosed with anything ‘chronic’ then I’d say, you’ve also been given a can of worms. And chronic means, you’re going to have to carry that can of worms with you forever.
Whether it was given to you via an accident, by your parents, from an operation, trauma, because you walked into a wall, or it just landed on you one dreadful moment from nowhere – you need to now deal with your can of worms and take regard them very seriously.
My example
Here is an image of the can of worms I felt I was handed by my GP on March 1st 2007:
After getting lost in the search for a diagnosis, those little buggers began to breed like rabbits and turned into this:
Since the diagnosis – roughly 6 years ago – and having searched high, low, and everywhere for suitable treatment (and finding it), I changed my can of worms.
I imagine them more like this now:
Yes, I still have the can of worms – remember the health issue is chronic and that means forever. But that’s the point of my thinking and the point of sharing my thinking – you gotta deal with chronic (the worms) or the situation will get much worse!
CLARIFICATION: The situation doesn’t stay the same – it gets worse! The can becomes heavier, the worms many more and now they even have your full support to multiply!
I continuously live in hope, that one day, I’ll manage the chronic issue even better than I am able to today…
…And the worms, hopefully will die off to just one little sucker!
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