What is Your Truth?

This is your disease telling you what to feel, how to feel… where are your thoughts in this process? What is your truth?

According to The 7th Stage of Fibromyalgia,  you would be in stage 5, possibly moving into stage 6. This is a tough time because you realize, this illness is not going anywhere. You have Fibromyalgia Syndrome and it is real and it is a disease. This is a life sentence! The positive, however, outweighs the negative because you have MADE IT this far! You made it through all the medical testing, the uncertainty, to the diagnosis!

Now you decide as you move through the stages, getting to the 6th stage, do you stop here? Hopeless, afraid, and feeling useless or do you find your purpose? Do you move into stage 7 and accept this disease and learn to live your best life with it? Or do you continue fighting, exacerbating your painful symptoms daily? You get to decide. In fact, no one can decide this but you. The decision will not be easy. Will you live with your fibro as an excuse or will you find purpose in it?

The acceptance stage comes after a long battle to get well, realizing that you are not able to retrieve the life you lived prior to your diagnosis. This doesn’t mean giving up. This means learning to accept a new way of life, your way of life. Less stress, less pain, less fear, less guilt. You must grieve for the life you planned but cannot live out. Once the grieving is done, this takes time and you will re-visit grief many times. Finally, you will find peace and purpose in the life you have.

Explore, learn, find what drives you. You must find purpose even with your limitations because you still have limitless options to choose from. You can lead a life that is full and lived well. Find your way to acceptance and never stop looking for better ways to manage your disease. You can do this!

~Kim