Are You Ready to Take A Stand?

Are you letting a label limit your enjoyment in life?  As a Baby Boomer or older adult, does a chronic illness taint your vision of the future?  Are you letting other people’s opinions of your health status cloud your desires?  If you answered “yes,” it’s time to take a stand!

Don't let others' opinions of you limit your enjoyment in life!
Don’t let others’ opinions of you limit your enjoyment in life!

Buy Your Luxury Car

A dear client of mine, we’ll call her Abby, recounted an interesting event to me just last week.  It went something like this:  Abby’s car was totaled a few months ago (her caregiver was driving and nobody was injured).  My client, in her 80s with Parkinson’s disease, had owned the small SUV because everybody felt is was safer for her to drive.  So when Abby and her daughter went looking for a replacement car, they test-drove the same types.  However, my client was not happy with any of the models.  A week or so later, her granddaughter suggested they visit CarMax where Abby could take a spin in all kinds of vehicles.

As it turns out, what Abby really wanted was comfort, a car with nice lines and a large trunk in case she ever needed to use a wheel chair.  “I took a stand,” she told me, “and bought the car I wanted!”

She came home with a beautiful white, gently used Lincoln sedan–a car that fit the bill, while not bowing to others’ limited view of what was “right” for her.

Abby is now driving short distances in her new car, and she is very happy with her decision.

What’s Your Limiting Health Issue?

I’ll bet you have one.  For example, do you have arthritis and believe it’s too painful, difficult or counterproductive to exercise?  Are you trying to lose weight and so you’ve given up on the joy of dining out with friends altogether?  Are you tired of your adult children hovering around you because they’re afraid you’ll fall?  Or, as in my case, do you have an “incurable” disease, so why bothering pushing yourself?

You can’t let these labels and beliefs limit your enjoyment in life.  I didn’t.  Diagnosed with myasthenia gravis 20 years ago, I decided not to let this muscle-weakness autoimmune disease define my life.  After getting discouraged seeing the condition and attitude of other “victims” of the disease at a few support groups, I decided on the course of action I felt best (with my doctor’s advice and family’s support), and went on with my life after a major surgery.  I still take immunosuppressants, but I’m so healthy that my family forgets I have the disease.

Take Your Stand!

Throw off the shackles of your limiting beliefs–whatever they may be.  Go outside your comfort zone (in a cautious way, of course) and enjoy yourself!  Acknowledge the concerns others have for your health and safety–they love you and want the best for you.  But this is your story, so take control and savor life!

To discover other ways to improve your mental and physical fitness, give me a call!

We can discuss some practical tips and discover if any of my programs or classes are a good fit for you.
If you’d like to schedule that call with me, just CLICK THIS LINK, and let me know in the message that you would like a 1-on-1 call with me right away and I will be in touch to schedule that – oh, and leave me your phone number in there too since email is not as reliable as it used to be! Thanks.

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