I’ve been down with what I call my ‘super flu’ (as it’s taken me super long to get over!) — it’s been quite a challenge for me as I’m not one who gets sick often.  I’m just about over the worst of it now thank goodness!

When I was in the thick of fever and barely able to establish if I’d slipped into a parallel reality through sheer disorientation, it was extremely difficult to see the light at the end of the tunnel — let’s face it…when we’re sick our whole world crumbles!

Our routines are knocked out of orbit and our lives come to a grinding halt.

Healer, Heal Thyself!

Okay, so I’m all for the idea of being able to heal yourself through thought, visualization and feeling complete health.  It’s a great concept when you’re feeling good but what about when you’re in a state of delirium?  It’s tough, I tell you!

I did try though and listened to bountiful amounts of healing meditations (you can find a plethora of these on YouTube) that certainly bought peace in moments of panic and soothed me for hours at a stretch.

However, it became clear that my body needed to go through this process for a reason and that’s what I kept reminding myself in the tougher times.

When we get sick it’s usually an indication to hop on the ‘go slow’ wagon. Chances are that you need some severe downtime and, more than likely, time to reflect and integrate what’s been going on in your life.

Making the Most of Feeling Shit

It’s hard to conceive that there is some kind of treasure in being ill but after much thought, I’ve come to the conclusion that there are heaps of diamonds to be mined from the experience.

And now — after medding myself up with garlic, ginger, spring water and copious amounts of raw honey (boy, does it get rid of that ‘tickle’ in the throat!) — my journey is drawing to a close.

Here are a few revelations I’ve gained from the experience:

• Reboot — Since I’ve been under the weather I have naturally not eaten any junk food or wanted to drink alcohol or coffee. I’ve noticed that all I crave is fruit, nuts, lots of water and veggie dishes like salads or steamed veg. I’m hoping to take this as a system restart and continue aligning myself to what my body truly wants. When we get sick I feel it’s an opportunity to reboot and urgently start listening to the demands of our vessel! I normally do eat very healthy but it took me getting sick to weed out some bad habits that were creeping in.
• Revamp — While I was nursing myself back to health, I watched a film called ‘Fork Over Knives’ — a doccie outlining the health importance of eating a plant-based diet — and, although I have followed this for many years now, my meal plans were starting to get real dull and boring. This documentary ignited a fire under my derriere to get more creative with mealtimes and reinvent a menu that is not only healthy but exciting. I can’t wait to start this new culinary routine! I’ve already made a list, whilst in bed, of 12 meals I intend to start making and rotating every week.
• Release — Another wonderful opportunity that arose while I was ill was releasing the things in my life that were just not working for me anymore. Having forced downtime gets you to do a lot of thinking while you’re staring at the ceiling. You get to reflect on your life and what needs trimming, releasing or renovating.
• Rejoice — We’re mostly on autopilot through our daily routines. Being sick has taught me what a blessing it is to be able to garden when I feel like it or do simple chores without wanting to pass out. We take so much for granted and sometimes it takes getting sick to realize it. I now find myself relishing the fact that I can do the dishes (which I didn’t much like doing before) or weed the veggie patch (also not the nicest of chores in the past). It’s given me a new perspective of my life and how much there is to rejoice in every day. Getting to sit behind my laptop writing this without breaking out into a cold sweat is just fantastic! I’m itching to get back into my art studio to paint — the creativity is seeping through my pores just bursting to be released. I have a heart full of gratitude, not only for starting to feel my body and health return but for all the small, medium and big things going on in my life right now. Life is actually quite exciting — we just forget sometimes in the daily grind.
• Renewal — The last thing on this list of revelations is the sense of general renewal I’m feeling. As I said in the previous point — my body feels regenerated and my lease on life has had a major boost. Being ill sucks but now I think of it like a phoenix rising from the ashes. At first I beat myself up about getting sick ‘cause I’m supposed to be ‘healthy’ but upon reflection, I realized that this has taught me to roll with the punches and to still find the good in the seemingly ‘bad’. I became aware that when people asked me how I was feeling and my response was negative, that I wasn’t walking the talk. I promptly changed my way of talking and thinking about my flu to positive healing discourse and feelings and started coming out of the funk pretty quickly.  It’s all important to refresh your thoughts and filter that inner dialogue no matter how ‘true’ feeling poorly is to you in the moment.  This now moment will future project where your thoughts/feelings are steering you.  So instead of thinking ‘I feel ill’ — try to realign that thought to ‘I am feeling better’ and then to ‘I feel/am healthy’.  Oh, and don’t give up!  If you don’t feel sprightly doing this by tomorrow, it doesn’t mean it’s not working.  We all have the power to spontaneously heal ourselves but, let’s face it, most of us are not there yet — so give yourself some time to recoup.

So that’s my rant for this week.  Things aren’t always as bad as they seem and with a bit of spit and polish about how you perceive certain challenges, you can walk away with a newfound treasure cache.

Original article written for Conscious Life News

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