Taking Care of Yourself is Hard Work

Let’s say you’ve gotten past all the self-talk providing reasons why you don’t take care of yourself. You know the list: I don’t have time, my mom needs me, I’m not worth it,… From my recent experience, taking care of myself is time consuming, ritualistic(something I have never been good at), needs study, and most of all requires paying attention to your body.

I have a very nasty condition called trigeminal neuralgia (TN). This condition was caused by nerve damage to my lower right jaw from a dental hygienist’s needle. It is nicknamed the “suicide disease” because it is excruciatingly painful.

I have never spent a lot of time taking care of me or my “look” as many who know me will agree. When this injury occurred six years ago just as I had retired, I was living in a fishbowl of a condo in the exotic Sonoran desert. The dentists and doctors had offered mind numbing drugs which I am sure contribute to the frequent falls senior citizens.. So I refused and screamed in pain alone in the beautiful, desolate desert. The pain would stay around for a few months and then give me a break for a while.

I am slowly learning to take care of myself. Like any relationship, it requires these things:

1. Paying attention

2. Listening carefully without interference (dismissing or arguing)

3. Repeat or rephrase to your body what you understand

4. Respond appropriately, not just one time and back to usual

Let your relationship with your body transform you both.