Sometimes a single word can be such a powerful compass. It can give direction when you’re feeling lost and it can remind you of your aspirations, values and strengths, helping you to regain your footing and find your way.Read More
Category: Writing
Reconnecting
Reconnecting with words. It feels good to be writing. My absence from the blog was unplanned; my recovery from labyrinthitis, supported so well by my week of self-care, was quickly followed by a glandular fever type infection, then a cold, which re-triggered the labyrinthitis. There was no respite, no opportunity to reconnect, as the ‘viral flare’, as my doctors are calling it, became increasingly multilayered and complex, making it even more challenging than usual to manage my FND. Days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months. I returned to basics again and again, emptying my toolbox of symptom-management techniques, as my body tried to heal and I worked to regain and maintain lost strength and functioning. Read More
A Week of Self-Care – Day 6 – Creativity
I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t creating something; music, cards, sewing, crochet, knitting, writing, colouring and drawing, it doesn’t really matter what it is, it’s the process I love. When I make something, I feel inspired, absorbed, hopeful and accomplished. I often think that as long as I have a creative outlet, I am okay.Read More
‘Hokusai Says’ by Roger Keyes
Hokusai says look carefully.
He says pay attention, notice.
He says keep looking, stay curious.
He says there is no end to seeing.
‘The Treasure of Pleasure’ – Rewiring the Brain for Happiness
I’m waiting for two hospital admissions. I don’t know when they’ll be or how how much notice I’ll be given before I have to pack my bag, say goodbye to my kitties and face yet more inpatient treatment and sleepless nights on a plastic hospital mattress. I have imminent meetings and assessments to review the care I receive, which, given government bureaucracy, can create huge amounts of stress. Not to mention the day to day challenge of managing my condition, living with difficult symptoms and finding ways to enable me to complete basic tasks most people take for granted. It could easily consume me. My life could centre round illness and disability, and all the suffering that accompanies it. That would be perfectly understandable. It might even be expected. It has happened in the past. But I know if I broaden my awareness, there is always something pleasant to experience.Read More
Inspiring Words
Have you ever read something and thought ‘yes, that’s it. That’s what I’m feeling. That’s what I’m supposed to do’? I have, many times. I use my own writing to make sense of my experiences, but I love reading writing by other people to broaden my views and challenge my ideas. Sometimes the best experience is when I read something I can relate to; maybe somebody has expressed something I’ve experienced but haven’t yet managed to articulate, or perhaps it’s simply the comfort of knowing I’m not alone. Then of course there’s the pure escapism when reading takes me away from my immediate experience to a different world. Read More
10 Ways to Start a Journal
If last week’s post ‘10 Health Benefits of Journaling‘ inspired you to pick up your pen, here are some different ideas to get you started. There really is a journaling style for everyone, whether you want to simply jot down a few points or devote a whole book to a specific area of your life. I’ve started a new Pinterest board on journaling here. It’s full of how-to guides and images to spark inspiration.Read More
10 Health Benefits of Journaling
I recently wrote about how keeping a journal formed my pathway to writing and how regular journaling helps me in so many ways (you can read that post here). Below are ten health benefits of journaling that I have personally experienced. If it inspires you to pick up a pen, look out for next week’s post ‘10 Ways to Start a Journal‘.Read More