September 9, 2021 - One decade... be present.

It’s been a decade since I got sick. I didn’t know then, that night, that my life was dramatically changed. I’ve done therapies, and they’ve...

February 23rd, 2019 What success looks like for me


This drawing of words are some key concepts, ideas that I try to use from my CBT - cognitive behavioral therapy.  I have a much better understanding now, than a year ago, of my PTSD anxiety - as well as when depression sets in.  That's a good thing.



I listened again to my piece "some kind of success" (2-6-19). Success in the US tends to be measured by very specific, conventional parameters - money, productivity, etc. It's really easy to get caught up in that, but for me - & I think many with chronic illness/conditions/disorders - it's really NOT helpful.

What does success really mean to me?
1) manageable fatigue - being tired at the end of the day is OK, & needing to rest once a day is also OK. More than that on a regular basis is not.

2) brain fog - occasional brain fog - i.e. after a really special event - is okay. More than that is not.

3) basic functioning - being able to do daily tasks of living - cooking, laundry, etc. - with what I consider reasonable pacing is okay. More than that is not.

4) activities for enjoyment - listening to music, audiobooks, creative stuff, occasional activities with my husband, phone calls, etc. - with what I considered for myself to be reasonable pacing is okay.  More than that is not.

5) occasional special events - holidays, etc. Being able to do this with a certain amount of extra planning is acceptable.  Feeling overwhelmed by them is not.

6) Support/maintenance therapy (to be figured out), so energy/time for ???

My birthday, & the anniversaries of when I started VT & Feldenkrais, are all in May.  Rehab is time, effort, $ if you put it in the simplest of terms. More communication - particularly with Dr. Margolis, & my vision therapist Ann - are needed. What goals do they have for me, do *I* have, that make sense?

Looking at this picture - this life I've described - IS, I think, a success. Unexpected stuff can, and almost certainly will, get into the mix. My goal will be to deal with whatever that stuff is, the best I can.



Bookmark the permalink. RSS feed for this post.

Leave a Reply

© 2014 - 2019 Tamar Schwartz, Visible Person Invisible Problem (VPIP). Powered by Blogger.

Search

Swedish Greys - a WordPress theme from Nordic Themepark. Converted by LiteThemes.com.