Do You Need A New Normal?

wbcgaruss

Hello and welcome friends and fellow survivors. Today I am going to post an article made by a lady on the Inspire Network & Communities. Her screen name is Mandymuff and she is a mother and grandmother and lives in Canada. I contacted her and she happily said I can use her posting on CSN, she said "Thank you for asking! Yes, certainly, I hope The Lord uses it to bring comfort to others." So below is the posting and I hope it brings thought, strengthening, resolve, hope, and maybe a different outlook or consideration of our circumstances and small ways we can improve our lot in life and or help others with theirs. Please feel free to share your comments, ideas and tips with the group. Take Care, God Bless-Russ

Do You Need A New Normal ?

During much of our lives, we do have what we like to call a normal day. That is…until a chronic illness creeps in, and “normal” seems to fly out the window!

Suddenly nothing seems the same….there is no order, no normal in our lives, and we become discouraged and depressed, everything is a mess, and we begin to feel like we are in a small boat with no motor and no oar…..just drifting in the wind, and we all know that does NOT FEEL GOOD!! However…we do not want to stay like that!

So that we are able to bring ourselves back to some semblance of order, we do NEED to establish a new normal. We need that because all humans need to feel that they have accomplished something, by the end of any given day. If we go to bed at night feeling that we did NOTHING today, it leads to…yes, actually can CAUSE depression!

That which we can call “accomplishing something” with our day is as varied as we are.

Some may be able to get out and take a fast walk for 20 miles in the morning, but unfortunately, most of us cannot do that. Some are able to walk from the easy chair to the bathroom, and that is the limit. But let's each try to make a realistic plan for “a normal day” for ourselves, and see what we can come up with. Remember that the old normal has passed away (for now) so we are going to establish a “new normal”! Why should we do this? BECAUSE IT IS IMPORTANT FOR OUR SPIRITUAL AND MENTAL HEALTH.

I’ll start, and then I ask you to share what would be a new normal for you and let’s see if it does make us feel better when we lay down to sleep at night. Please remember to be realistic with what you can and cannot do.

I wake in the a.m. and fix a coffee in the Keurig and sit in the lazy-girl chair in the living room. As I sit and sip my coffee, I dedicate my day to my Lord. My cat comes to my lap for some cuddling, and my day begins. We have breakfast and I load the dishwasher, make the bed, and get a shower. Those are my “normal”…even on a bad day, I have already accomplished something. No…it’s not a big deal, but already I am pleased with myself because I have done something worthwhile. Any time we can still care for ourselves on some level, we have reason to be thankful for it! And it needs to become “our normal”.

It gives me some structure, some satisfaction. Now that is not usually the end of my day but it is as far as I am going tonight. I’ll come back to it later on, down the line here.

Now how about you? Do you have a normal, or….are you needing to establish a new normal for yourself? Please share….we all need each other!