When you think you have it bad, usually someone else has it worse.
I learned that while working in a trauma center. I saw some devastating injuries that many people, somehow, pulled through. One young man, while working on a utility pole, was electrocuted. The current blew his right arm off his body. He lived and managed to muster up the courage and positivity to get through the healing, skin grafts, wound care, and nightmare of it all.
One of my friends, a physical therapist at the time, liked to say, “There but for the grace of God go I.”
Sometimes life is hard. Injuries, illnesses, surgeries…stuff happens that takes you in a direction you don’t want to go. It’s not what you signed up for, it’s not on the action list.
But, there’s always a choice. Hard to do for sure. But it’s there.
You won’t have to look far to find the negative in life. It’s how we’re all wired. We’ll search for the evidence to support our position and we’ll find it. “See, I told you this sucks and nothing will ever get better.”
My father (with whom I reunited after a 35 year gap – that’s another story) had a procedure done about two years ago to install something called a Left Ventricular Assist Device or LVAD. An LVAD replaces the function of the left ventricle in your heart. It’s a battery powered pump that sits on the outside of your body. He’s forever dependent on his batteries being charged.
He has had his own Mount Everest to climb…everyday. Getting dressed, navigating around his house, doing his exercises consumes most of his time. His “rehab” folks recently discharged him leaving him with the ability to walk only short distances and unable to navigate a one level change to get to his car. Yet, when I speak with him on the phone, there’s very little negativity. Frustration, yes, but never moaning about how awful things are . Instead, he’s more likely to say, “I just need to get my strength in my legs back. If I can get some strength, I think I’ll be okay.”
The definition of a positive mindset.
Finding the positive, in what looks like a very tough situation, takes work. It doesn’t just drop in your lap.
And if my father’s situation isn’t enough motivation, take a cue from this young woman about the power of a positive mindset and learn to cultivate it in yourself.
Walls come down. Pathways open. The future becomes brighter.
I like to remind myself, when I’m swimming in the deep end of the pity pool, that I don’t have it so bad. I can do a lot of things and I can still make choices to improve myself and situation.
There but for the grace of God go I.
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Doug Kelsey, PT, PhD writes about “active aging” – how to overcome aches & pains, get strong, flexible, agile and stay as healthy and fit as possible over your lifetime. If you enjoyed this article, join his free newsletter.
