Over the last few weeks, I’ve taken a little time to myself to reflect on my life before and since my aneurysm and stroke. I’ve also been thinking about what I wanted to write to each of you with May being stroke awareness month. How did I want to address the past ten years living with, healing from, and pushing through what my own spinal cord stroke gave me with paralysis? And how to say what I’ve learned and persevered through all these years after awaking into my new journey? I turned fifty-nine at the beginning of the month, which also brought about its own reflections as well. In all my thinking, I realized that what I really wanted to talk about was the bridge that delivered me along the way from stroke awareness to life awareness.
Ending Isolation
Isolation. My first thought when I think of this word is that it deserves respect. There are times when I need isolation to just calm my mind and not cloud it with thoughts. I might need a little time to myself as I go up into the mountains on a quiet Sunday morning drive, or on a short walk to clear my head and listen to nature. In other words, there are times when I want a little isolation. However, there are other times when it isn’t conducive to my healing because there’s too much of it. I suppose there’s a balance to this word as I think back over the past ten years since my own trauma and fighting paralysis. The challenge is that we don’t always get to choose what measure of isolation we need or know what to do when it’s too much.
Steps to Create the Future You Really Want
The building blocks of creating your future when you’re just getting started in life can certainly be filled with excitement as you think about all the unknowns that lie ahead. Dreaming of your plan, soliciting advice and guidance while streamlining your direction, then implementing it and putting forth all the hard work to bring your master plan to life. It’s natural along the way that our focus is on accomplishment and succeeding at our quest that we may not think about obstacles that might alter our course along the way.
The Realities of Harnessing Inner Strength
I think we can all say we look toward our inner strength for many reasons, like the uncertainty of venturing into the unknown so we can evolve and prove our bravery to ourselves while standing in defiance of our internal and external tormentors. We are ultimately just trying to live our lives happily, but there are times when we need to stand toe-to-toe with phrases like, “I wish I could do that,” and make them actually happen. I did this when a life-saving surgery caused a stroke on my spinal cord and paralyzed me from the neck down. I was told I would probably never walk again, yet here I stand and walk due to inner strength and fortitude.
Stumbling Blocks to Avoid on Your Journey to Positivity
I learned something by coincidence early in life: giving of myself washed away physical and emotional pain if I allowed myself to just live in moments of kindness. Since my journey began, I have found that although I may be limited in what I can do for others physically, I can give of myself in other ways that still bring happiness, letting me know I can still be useful in helping others.
However, there are stumbling blocks on this journey for those of us with trauma or any other type of limitation. We need to be mindful of these circumstances and avoid them as best as possible if we are to prevail and live in a world of acceptance and happiness.
Staying Healthy After a Trauma or Injury: The Importance of a Healthy Diet
Keeping yourself healthy after a trauma or injury is vital in your recovery journey because movement is essential for your body to heal. Now, that’s not always easy. In my case, I was paralyzed when my journey began. But even though I couldn’t move, I still respected the importance of a healthy diet. Below are three key steps to help you maintain your health after a trauma or injury.
Why Self-Advocacy is Vital in Recovery
Imagine you have been invited to a football game, you are disabled, and your ability to walk is not as good as those who invited you to come along. Where their thoughts are on the fun of watching the game, your thoughts are on the distance walking from the car to the stadium, navigating the crowds, climbing the steps to the row where you're seated, and stepping past everyone on that row to get to your seat. Once seated, you fixate on other things. Should you eat during the game or have something to drink? What if you need to go to the bathroom? Can you get to a restroom without falling as you navigate past all the people there and back again? Do you have enough energy to make it back to the car after the game, and will you be able to keep pace with everyone else? Are you even thinking about the game, and can you manage to let the fun from this happy day spent socializing seep in so you can truly enjoy yourself? This is a place where self-advocacy becomes a balance.
Sending Gratitude and Holiday Blessings
Whether we recognize it or not, for those of us who are disabled we get to appreciate what it means to be thankful more than most because we’ve been given a second chance to live our lives. Volunteer to share those thoughts and feelings with all who will listen, and I’m sure you’ll find the hope and inspiration you provide will lift many hearts and bring forward the reasons why we celebrate during this time of the year.
Why Sharing Your Survival Story is Important
Sharing your survival story is pivotal to moving forward and prevailing through hardships. But sharing your story also:
1) Spreads awareness and encourages understanding, 2) Inspires positive direction and action, and 3) Gives others hope to overcome. In other words, sharing your journey and challenges creates change. Sharing your survival story matters more than you might think.
Comparison is the Thief of Joy: How to "Comparison-Proof" Your Recovery
Surviving and Thriving Post-Aneurism and Stroke: Guest Post from Christie Richardson Schreppel
I have the honor of connecting with many fellow survivors and thrivers who share the same goal: lift up others. Christie Richardson Schreppel’s comeback from two life-changing events shows how dedication, positivity, and continued efforts lead to worthwhile results. Christie, like many, had to work for recovery and rehabilitation progress, and she stayed positive and faithful throughout.
5 Practices to Improve Your Future Today
Big changes don’t happen overnight. It’s important to remember one day of practicing these methods to improve your life isn’t enough. Keep at it, build beneficial habits, and reap longterm rewards. You might not notice immediately, but overtime your results will speak for themselves. Listed below are five of these practices that you can look at as daily gifts instead of repeating obligations.
5 Steps to Tailor Routines to Disability Needs
Your body does evolve, and so should your routine! My own daily routine has changed many times over the past nine years since my disability began. Although I modify my level of performance as needed, my baseline routine stays intact and at a comfort level that’s suitable to me. Remember to help your future self by occasionally reviewing your daily patterns using these 5 steps.
5 Self-Advocacy Steps For Independent Research
Independent research is a crucially important part of each person’s recovery. Your own research directly effects your long term outcome while you work to heal each day. This is all quite frustrating for sure, but when it comes to your body this troubleshooting is vital — especially if it leads to possible surgery. How you learn to listen to your body and communicate to others makes a marked difference in how you move forward or how you digress.
5 Tips to Return to Work Post-Aneurysm or Stroke
Going back to work after surviving an aneurysm and/or stroke isn’t easy. Countless unknowns certainly test your confidence. Having said that, your first priority to succeed here is actually much easier than anything you’ve done up to this point in your recovery: have faith and confidence in yourself.
Before we dig into 5 tips to navigate the workplace during or following your recovery, let’s cover what you’ve already accomplished:
Getting through what you suffered along with all that followed was the hard part. Your life changed. You’ve had to learn how to start over on every level, and now you’re here getting ready to go back to work. Let’s talk about what you’ve learned about yourself thus far. Your confidence level has reached another step up along this new journey with your limitations. Therefore, trust and faith have entered your mind to control a wheelchair or figuring out once again how to put one foot in front of another. You’ve relearned a manageable level of independence to do daily chores on your own. What feels uncertain is doing something new in front of others instead of in the privacy of your own home, where if something doesn’t go so well or as planned, you’re most likely the only one who sees it. Returning to work means you’re center stage among coworkers. This is where your conviction to succeed needs to find its way into your soul. No matter what setbacks might occur throughout any day, you must rely on your confidence and keep looking forward with your chin held high and a smile on your face.
Now, here are 5 tips to consider when preparing to go back to work post-aneurysm or stroke recovery:
1. Communicate Your Needs
When you return to work, find a way up front to let everyone know what is and isn’t acceptable to you. What are you willing to strive to achieve? If your limitations stand in the way, then let that be where you’re willing to accept dependence on others. Do everything you can to set a high bar for yourself when it comes to achievement. In doing so, you set a high bar for everyone else you work with each day.
By communicating your needs, your coworkers see and learn where your limits are and when they should step in to assist you. Having others lend a hand isn’t a problem, nor should asking for help be seen as a roadblock. That said, make sure you never take advantage of your coworkers: strive for independence wherever possible!
2. Be Mindful of Your Mindset
In the beginning, the workplace is as much an assault to your senses as the first day you woke up with your disability. It’s new, it’s unknown, and it requires your patience. Your return might remind you of your first day going to school, with so many uncertainties, fears, and apprehension, but give it a chance. Go into this new chapter of your life with an open mind and enthusiasm. Focus on the mindset that you’re doing this because you want to, not because you have too.
Go into this day with a smile on your face and realize there are people out there in the world who wish they could be doing what you’re doing. However, do it being mindful of your emotions and energy levels. If it’s been a while since you last worked, your body and your mind are not accustomed to thinking beyond what’s going on inside you. Therefore, your using your brain more can cause fatigue onset sooner than expected. When physical and mental fatigue occur at the same time, it’s easy to find yourself overwhelmed. Some people may find it easier to navigate this type of setback. Others may find themselves struggling with mood swings.
So be careful when it comes to exerting yourself. Don’t be afraid to speak up and communicate as needed, and always be mindful of your own mindset.
3. Ask For Help
This is one of those tricky areas that people with disabilities can have difficulties with. Because asking for help switches between independence and dependence, it’s natural to struggle with bringing in outside assistance. Disability or not, we all find times in our lives when we need to ask for help. This doesn’t mean we’ve given up, but rather the opposite: asking for help means, under the current circumstances, we must accomplish something with external assistance.
Asking for help is far better than injuring yourself and causing a setback. This also helps you manage your energy and assists with bonding with your coworkers. It may take some doing, but the more you practice, the more organic and natural collaborating to accomplish workplace goals will feel.
Find a way to let asking for help into your life. Remember, your journey forward works more efficiently when you open yourself up to change.
4. Build Endurance Overtime
Energy management is the most important factor in your recovery and is especially important when you go back to work. Strengthening your endurance is a daily goal, and not one to rush.
There’s a lot of personal therapy to be found returning to work as well. If you’re craving the return of normalcy, the workplace is a great place to find a familiar, reliable routine. When you’re absorbed in work, you’re concentrating more on the project at hand than on your disability. You’re interacting with coworkers and talking about subjects that are not centered around you. In other words, you benefit from engaging in a regular work life!
The more you do as each day comes and goes, the more you’ll build strength and endurance. If you feel that you’re physically or mentally weak in certain areas, then here’s two suggestions I can provide that work hand in hand: Pilates for the strength training, and neuromuscular massage to calm your body. Pilates will work the small stability muscles, and the massage therapy will reduce help to reduce adhesions and restrictions in your muscles.
Remember that endurance is built overtime. This is a long-term goal, not a short-term accomplishment. Pace yourself now, thank yourself later.
5. Document Your Progress
Find time at the end of each day to sit and write about what worked and didn’t work. What made you happy? What bothered you? How do you make the next workday smoother? Journaling is very good therapy to consider because it helps you to release your concerns and helps calm your soul by venting as you write. Writing also assists you in seeing progression along this new advancing journey.
Remember this when you journal: it doesn’t have to be perfect or a few pages long. Again, just start small as in a sentence or two.
I hope these 5 tips will help you more confidently navigate the workplace. Although each journey is unique, there are common battles we each face, in one way or another. My aim is to always help where I can, even if it’s by lending an ear in the comments section. If you have a thought or question, please don’t hesitate to connect below or find me on socials.
Honoring Mac: Until We Meet Again
Nine years ago I went to an early morning doctor’s appointment and told Mac I would be back in an hour. I didn’t come home that day because I ended up in the hospital fighting for my life. This past Wednesday evening I think he had every intention of doing the same when he suddenly fell ill and needed to go to the hospital. I told him everything would be ok and I asked him to come back, but God had other plans. Your gift of peace, happiness, and pleasant memories will always replace my grief and have a special warm place in my heart. I will miss you forever my little son Mac.
Managing Pain: 5 Activities to Relax the Mind and Soul
How do we manage our pain and how do we find activities that relax our mind and soul? In this post, I share 5 tips you can implement today to make positive change. Disabled people dealing with pain and exhaustion from their limitations work very hard to keep their emotions in check. They also dream and have aspirations of a day when they are liberated from their bonds. Please be kind and non-judgmental along their journey!
Writing About Trauma, Disability, Recovery: The Story Behind FINDING FORWARD
There is power in writing your story. There is honor in sharing what you’ve gained with others. After waking up paralyzed from the neck down at 49, I realized there was no instruction manual I could refer to during this time, no resource I could lean on to find my way through dark hours, no guide on how to find my way forward. But now, there’s a book in the works that points readers toward proactive vs. reactive recovery approaches, methods to overcome obstacles, and tips on how to avoid letting “I can’t” rule your vocabulary. My journey has taken unexpected turns, and it’s time to pass on what I’ve picked up: Finding Forward: You Have the Will Within hits bookshelves on October 12, 2021. Read on to find the link to preorder!
7 Steps to Inner Peace After a Disabling Event
For so many of us who find ourselves facing a new disability, the challenges that come along with it can be both small and immense. However, despite this collision with fate, a little ingenuity and awareness help us discover we can succeed in overcoming our setbacks. These 7 steps will help you create an inner peace and find your way forward after a disabling event.
How to Return to Work After an Intense Injury
Returning to work after a devastating injury can be an opportunity to heal in an exciting and different way. The psychological side of working has many different challenges that are good in multiple ways, like giving back, contributing, feeling worthwhile, and restarting your life. On the other hand, those challenges require a thick skin at times when you might not be prepared. The lesson here is to keep fighting at all costs. Even though your fight is harder than most, the payoff in the end is a life that is appreciated more than normal people can ever know. I am always mindful of every nuance of a good day, and on those painful, heart-hurting days when I need some uplift, I lean toward a song by the Beatles and Sir Paul McCartney, “Let It Be.”