After my 2013 Thanksgiving post and 2014 Thanksgiving post, I couldn’t NOT publish a 2015 Thanksgiving post! (or my 2016 post!)
Of course I’m grateful for my family.
Of course I’m grateful for my health, my friends, and my life.
But this year, I’m most grateful for my struggles.
Every single one of them. Because, without them, I wouldn’t be the person I am today.
The past 3 years have been an extremely transformational time for me. As I venture into a new chapter of my life, I can’t help but to be so grateful for the ups and downs who have carried me to my new path.
Back in October, I had tweeted something about how I truly felt that my health conditions were the biggest blessing I’d ever received. I actually received a lot of back lash from that tweet – many didn’t understand why I’d look at pain and struggling as a GOOD thing.
But one of the responses made me really think . . . A friend on twitter asked me to elaborate on why I thought of my struggles as a blessing. I started thinking about how long it’s taken me to get here and how it truly was a journey. I truly believe that to accept our struggles, we all have to take time to grieve. Each of us has a completely different path and those thoughts spurred me to write the post: 5 Stages of Grief & Loss.
From that post, it got me thinking and thinking and thinkkkkinnnggg and I decided to create an instagram challenge, with the help of some great friends, to help chronically fabulous patients to start looking at their chronic conditions in a different light. I truly believe that having a positive outlook is a vital step in the healing process.
So for the past 26 days, I’ve focused on helping other patients look at their chronic conditions in a different light, because I think a huge turning point for me was when my perspective on my situation changed. I’m so grateful for my ups and downs, the good and bad times, the highs and the lows. They’ve taught me so much about myself, my life and how I want to live my life.
How do you look at the struggles in your life?? Do you let them propel you in to the future or do you let them bog you down in the present? This Thanksgiving, take a moment and reflect on how you view your struggles in your life. You may not be able to look at them as blessings right off the bat – but in time, your perspective can change and you’ll become a much happier person 🙂
HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!
I love this song, so so so much. Take a few minutes and listen to Josh’s beautiful voice and this gorgeous song “Thankful”.
Wishing You A Pain Free Day!
