The Most Important Thing You Can Do When You're Ill...

Hi Honeys
I think I'm finally <touch wood> on the mend! After over six weeks of my body trying to cough up a lung (or two!) I've reached a point where I can stand at the back door to watch over our furbaby Jade in the garden without being bent over in a coughing fit.

Changes in temperature still bring on coughs but I've been a passenger on this yearly chest infection roundabout ride for most of my life, having been born with damaged lungs, and I know it's near the end now.  Winter is fun around here. Not. It hasn't lasted this long for a few years and while it hasn't been fun I'm happy that I've managed not to miss any shifts at work.

I'm blessed to only work two days a week, although they are the two busiest days of the week and both run through into late evening, but bills need paying so I do feel blessed not to have lost any much needed pay.

What I have lost though is January.  Hubby & I had such plans for the first month of the year.  We were going to start the year by decluttering & organizing each of the rooms in our home before making a start on decorating projects but here we are in February (how did that happen!) and nothing done yet.

Which brings me to my point honeys.  The single most important thing you can do for yourself when you're not feeling your best is to treat yourself with the same care as you would any other loved one. We know that, right?  Then why is it so difficult to do?

We're wired that way dear ones.  We keep our homes, we cook, we clean, we care for furbabies & family members health but when it comes to self care our programming flags this behavour up as being selfish.  Mine certainly does. Loudly.  My inner voice can be a real nagging Nellie and can she guilt trip me!

I've learnt though, from hard won experience, that unless we're willing to invest the time and self care that's needed when we're poorly it will take far longer to shift whatever ails us.  Writing cheques our bodies cannot cash is a sure fire way to make any illness drag on and on.

You have to take care of you honeys, because if you don't, how are you going to be strong enough to care for your loved ones?  We have to block the voice in our head that tells us we're being lazy or selfish for snuggling on the sofa with our furbaby when we're ill.

Tell that inner voice to shush. Pay it no mind and do what you need to do to get better.  Rest.  Drink lots of fluids to stay hydrated, eat regularly, even if it's only a small amount, but most of all rest. 

Wishing you good health, smiles, love, laughter and a whole heap of hugs dear ones.  Till next time, stay warm, smile lots and hug even more x