Joining the hand of Pain along the road

Sometimes I lose count as to how long Pain has been in my life. It feels like I have been "on a hard run" to just stay ahead of Pain, yet realizing that Pain doesn't let you gain much ground. On the bad days of Pain–today being one due to weather changes that are bringing us "blessed rains" for our parched area–my "Weather Reminder" has been barking at me all day, meaning extra Pain in my leg and neck that woke me very early this morning.

Days like this take my spirits down fast. So I try hard to "keep a positive outlook." It works for a while. Sometimes I can make it through most of the day. But gradually, exhaustion settles in, and all I want to do is "plop in my chair and moan!" Let's be honest. We are human, and there are times when we can't fight the battle with Pain as we would like to. What I did not realize is the "extra baggage" I have been carrying with me all these years since my fall from the tree–a ton of anger found a spot inside me and it has been Me versus Pain. Gee, let's take a wild guess as to who WON. Certainly not me!

But the Lord is amazing and sent me a "new outlook" from Betty, a wonderful woman who struggles daily with Pain. I was humbled to learn about her journey and how she made the decision to not deal with Pain as the enemy but instead as Friend! I  read those words over and over as the message kept hitting me. "Martha, you have always had a choice!" I thought about all the fruitless hours spent, being resentful toward Pain and blaming myself for climbing that tree! Finally, I have realized that it's time to say, "I had a really bad accident." And instantly, it felt like a large weight was being lifted from my heart!

For me, it's always been easier to reach out to others and offer encouraging words but much harder to turn that helping hand toward myself. Dealing with Chronic Pain is a full-time job, and the struggles we go through–going from being active in life to being someone who has to struggle just to make it to the chair–make us feel so helpless about all that Pain takes from us. It's a hard journey, make no mistake about it. But there is always HOPE! I believe we can be examples for each other by sharing "how we cope with Pain" because that's the best teaching tool! We live this Journey each day, and who knows better about Pain than we who face it each day?

Don't be afraid to reach out to someone else. I am profoundly grateful to Betty and her willingness to share with others. It's going to take me a bit to learn, but something tells me, "it's worth the effort!"

God bless you all. Be strong and keep looking for Joy each day.