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Welcome to the Health Activist Writer’s Month Challenge brought together by WEGO Health – a social network for all health activists.  Again, I am participating in the annual Writer’s Month Challenge in which I will be writing about my health activism and health condition based upon given prompts.

Thursday April 2nd: Key to Happiness 

What do you think is the key to happiness?  Is it being able to overcome a hard time?  Laughter?  Maintaining a positive attitude?  Tell us what you think and why.

Happiness is simply defined as ‘the state of being happy’.

The definition itself may be universal but the meaning behind the word is different for every individual.  Just like we all have different likes and interests, what makes us happy is different for all of us.

However, modern life has taught us that happiness is contingent upon our accomplishments, and not having any troubles to speak of.  On this basis, therefore, a person such as me living with a chronic illness which causes a lot of troubles in my day-to-day life, should not be happy. This is cannot be further from the truth as many of the happiest people whom I have known over the years as had to endure some sort of hardship of some kind.

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“Happiness is a journey not a destination” is a fantastic example of the depiction of happiness in our modern lives; we are so focused on the end result which we think will bring us happiness, we forget however to appreciate the simple day-to-day pleasures.  We are too busy rushing around to see the beauty of the world around us.

One of life's simple pleasures
One of life’s simple pleasures

Living with a chronic illness, at times can be exceptionally difficult due to wavering severity of symptoms and the rollercoaster of emotions it evokes.  However, I  also believe that living with a chronic illness can also allows us to stop within our daily lives and appreciate the simplest of pleasures such as the relief of a warm bubblebath or our favourite song playing on the radio.  Chronic illness can cause us to enjoy and appreciate the journey rather than focusing on the destination as many do due to the demands of modern living.

Finding simple pleasures to enjoy and allowing them to bring happiness is just important key to happiness, but as often the door to happiness is often locked to us when we are struggling and experiencing difficult times, there is always more than one key to unlock the door and find happiness on the other side.

Choose Hope and Happiness
Choose Hope and Happiness

One other important key is remaining positive and embracing hope.  Surrounding myself with positivity and the favourite inspirational quotes that adorn my bedroom helps to keep the light on during my darkest days and gives me hope for a brighter tomorrow.  They are not a miracle cure for the down days that I often experience as a result of living with a neurological condition but they are a reminder that these feelings and the severity of the symptoms at that particular moment, are just that a fleeting moment in a much longer series of moments.

But more importantly, happiness cannot be bought or be given by materialistic objects but by those people we are surrounded by, who give us comfort and support when we are in need of it most and also by the little moments of pleasure that makes life worth living (despite living with a chronic illness).

Sorry for the recent lack of updates on the blog.  Despite still being active on my social media sites, I, however, have struggled to find the time or energy to write a post for the blog.  I had been experiencing good days during the last posts that I published. Still, unfortunately, as many of you living with a chronic illness will relate to, these good days do not last, and so my health has slowly regressed back and therefore bad days have replaced the good days. And days where life has been anything but a fairy tale.

Finding Solace and Comfort in Films

But, I have found time to watch films that I had wanted to see for some time.

I cried during ‘The Fault in Our Stars’ and enthralled with ‘Maleficent.’

Captivated by the story of the villain depicted in the classic Disney film ‘Sleeping Beauty’ and even more so by the enchanting performance by Angelina Jolie.

A beautiful image of the Cinderella Castle in Magic Kingdom but as experience teaches us, life is anything but a fairy tale

And I was particularly impressed by how Maleficent was not merely a retelling of the fairytale Sleeping Beauty.

Don’t get me wrong, I love fairy tales, my favourite being Beauty and the Beast, but let’s face it, they are all highly unrealistic.

They portray everything as being black or white, or characters being either good or evil.

What I loved about Maleficent, therefore, was the portrayal of the eponymous character as being both good and evil.  Unlike classic fairy tales, the story of Maleficent portrayed various shades of grey.

My Movies TV Google Play
My Movies TV Google Play2

Fairytales: A Metaphor of Life With Chronic Illness?

It then got me thinking of life with chronic illness.

If we were in a fairy tale, our illnesses would play the character of an evil beast.  Illness becoming the role of a villain, much like Maleficent in Sleeping Beauty or Ursula from The Little Mermaid.

Our lives would be darkened and ruined by the beast that is inside of us.

Every day would be bad with no room for happiness, sunshine or joy.

However, just as real life is not merely black and white; I choose to believe that the experience of living with a chronic illness is more like the portrayal of Maleficent; no one thing is purely good or evil.

But life, and especially life with a chronic illness, is anything but a fairy tale.

Chronic Illness: A Hero Or A Villain?

I believe that even living with something as tricky as a chronic illness; there are a lot of different shades of grey.

There are good times despite living with chronic illness, even though the ‘sick’ days heavily outweigh the good ones.

"There are good times…even though the 'sick' days heavily outweigh the good ones." Share on X

I also choose to believe that chronic illness can be both a hero and a villain, much like Maleficent.

It may sound strange to describe a chronic illness as a hero. Many would not think of such a title given the severe and debilitating symptoms we have to live with because of it.

However, chronic illness can also have a positive impact on our lives. It can teach us things about ourselves that we might never have known.

Chronic illness can also give us the strength and resilience to overcome many obstacles and limitations that our conditions create.

Furthermore, we can also become more empathetic and understanding as a result of our struggles with illness.

The Lessons That Chronic Illness Can Teach Us

Living with a long-term health condition can teach us some invaluable life lessons. Ones that we may never have learned if it wasn’t for illness. Such as the importance of learning to slow down and learning to appreciate the small things in life.

The severe and debilitating symptoms of chronic illness is the predominant reason that it plays the role of villain in our lives. But the lessons it teaches us proves that it can also play the role of a heroine.

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Classic fairy tales have stereotypically portrayed us, females, as rather feeble and fragile. And in of rescuing by a handsome and athletic Prince

Modern Disney films, such as Mulan and Frozen, for example, have shattered these archetypes. They have shown that females have the strength and power to rescue themselves from the trials and tribulations that life has thrown at them.

My experience of living with a neurological condition has taught me of our abilities to rescue ourselves from our battles in whatever form that they take.  Doctors, medications and other treatments for me and many others can only do so much.  It is often down to us as individuals to self-manage our conditions. As well as finding little ways to help ease our symptoms or that which makes us feel better emotionally.

"Chronic illness has taught me we all have the power to rescue ourselves from our battles." Share on X

It is up to us to save ourselves from the depression and emotional pain that can result from living with a long-term chronic illness.

It is our responsibility to make sure we are happy and live the best life we can, regardless of the limitations upon us due to chronic illness.

Life Is Anything But A Fairy Tale

Classic fairy tales and Disney films are renowned for their ‘happily ever after’ and as we are all aware, in real-life, and especially a life with chronic illness happily ever after merely does not exist. Life being anything other than a fairy tale.

"There are no happy ever after's with chronic illness…but it does not mean that we cannot be happy." Share on X

It does not mean that we cannot be happy.

However, we need to find our idea of happiness, whatever that may entail.

Happy endings can be difficult to find as a result of chronic illness, but I would like to think that they do exist, but perhaps it means that we have to look that little bit more to find the rainbow through our storms.

Happy endings can be found despite chronic illness but life is still anything but a fairy tale
Happy endings can still be found despite chronic illness!

Time for a new post!

And today I will be talking about a subject we were discussing at yesterday’s ‘Life 4 Living’ – a group that I am member of in my local town, one which establishes fun, friendship and understanding.

Positive Psychology is a relatively new branch within psychology and is basically the study of happiness, and one in which scientifically examines how ordinary people can become happier and ultimately live a more fulfilled life.  Happiness is not something which makes us feel good but can also have a beneficial impact upon other areas of our lives such as social relationships, improved physical health and in a study amongst nuns it has even been found happiness can even help you live longer.

Image: http://www.paranormalpeopleonline.com/the-myth-of-positive-psychology-%E2%80%93-what-the-guru%E2%80%99s-don%E2%80%99t-want-you-to-know/

Many of us within the group suffer with chronic illness and find that we may feel unwell a lot of the time – these times, it often seems impossible to remain positive and upbeat…but that does not mean that we cannot find the beauty in life or still find joy in the little things which we enjoy.  Life is a fantastic journey – not always easy and some of us find we have to climb huge mountains but there are lessons with we can all learn from during the hard times.

As a piece of ‘homework’ we have been given an exercise to complete, a way in which we can all learn to become more positive – every day to write in a little notepad or journal 3 things that we have been grateful for – it could be absolutely anything!!  For example, it could be having a chat with a friend, or receiving a compliment from a stranger, it could even be grateful for being alive!!

Gratitude Diary – Image: www.paperchase.co.uk

At the moment, I think I would say that I am grateful for:

  • My Parents – such a great support system and have stuck by me through everything
  • My Dog – on a bad day it is wonderful just to have a cuddle from her
  • My online support system – these ladies are such a blessing, and find myself looking forward to our Skype Meetings every fortnight with joy

So, what are you grateful for?

                                                                                                                                                   

To learn more about the ‘Nun Study’, I have found a great resource which you can read here

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