"Watch Me"

A few days ago,

this picture was posted on the 
Facebook page of a Fitness site
I subscribe too.
 
I immediately tagged the picture and the
quote as my New Mantra.
At first glance, I really like the phrase
and the strength of the girl in the photo!

But as I thought about this,
I realized this IS my mantra and
HAS BEEN for nearly 20 years-

When I was first diagnosed with Lupus,
I was really too naive to be overwhelmed,
scared or worried.
To be honest, I just kept my head in the sand
for a while-
But for some reason, Lupus was in the news
a lot at about the same time I got my diagnosis.
A popular movie was released where one of the
supporting characters dies from Lupus.
A famous actor's wife was discussing her
battle with Lupus and the risks she faced
in child birth.
Therapies were being researched...
And my husband of all of 1 year, kept
bringing me books about Lupus-
so I did a lot of reading.

It's strange to me now that I can remember it so well,
but I was reading in one book, a compilation of
individual stories, each story written by a patient of lupus.

One story hit me hard,
it was a mother who talked about how she frequently
felt that her children's lives were impacted
adversely because there were some days
she just couldn't get out of bed and
many days that she had to cancel plans
with her family because she didn't feel well.
I don't know why her story struck such a cord,
but it did-

I determined on that day, nearly six months after
final diagnosis,
that THAT wasn't going to be me.
I wasn't going to live my life defined by Lupus
nor was my family going to be so impacted by
this disease that I barely understood.

The first step I took was to educate myself
on the disease itself.
Next, I educated myself on my own body-
I journaled every thing about my life at the time-
what I ate, when I slept, what I did each day
and how I felt-
It didn't take long for me to realize that exercise
was HANDS DOWN the best thing I could do for
my body, my health and my wellness.

internet stock picture

I am not an athlete and exercise isn't my Natural
first choice for early in the morning activities-
but I have made a decision to put exercise as a
priority and I believe it has paid off more than
any other thing I have been doing long term.

Several years ago, I became converted to the
importance of diet for overall health and wellness
as well. I have noticed a freedom from symptoms
when I combine a healthy diet with a regular fitness
regime.

Time and again, I have gone for a check up
and my doctors have been amazed at how incredibly
well I handle the disease.
I have friends who have
known me for years before knowing Lupus is
my constant companion and my children
have been free from the worry and impact that
I read about so many years ago.

Though there are days I need more than just a salad

and a yoga class...
 
and when those days come, I quickly look
for what might be out of balance!

Knowing my body has taught me that there are
days I need to rest, days I need to recover.
Because of this,I carefully schedule my life
so I have time to recover if I need to,
(read about my Mom's Day Off here).

My experience has taught me that we are our
own best ally in the field of Health & Wellness.
Our attitude plays a huge part in how we overcome
our personal challenges.
We have more control than we understand in
finding health, happiness and JOY.

So back to my Mantra,
each time my body tries to tell me
that I can't do something because of
how I feel,
I take a deep breath and say,
"Ya, watch me do it" and I'll do it with a smile!

It hasn't been easy-
more days than not, I want to stay in bed
and talk about my pains-
but more days than not, I get out of bed
without saying a word-
and get on with the beauty that unfolds-

And for that, I have no regrets!