This is my
fight song,
Take back my
life song
Prove I'm
alright song
My power's
turned on
Starting
right now I'll be strong
I'll play my
fight song
And I don't
really care if nobody else believes
'Cause I've
still got a lot of fight left in me
- Rachel Platten : Fight Song
Two nights ago I awoke at 2am with excruciating pain in my tummy. It’s a familiar pain, I’ve been living with
it for many years, I’ve been to many doctors, I’ve done many tests… it’s a pain
that will have me writhing on the bathroom floor for hours as my body tries to
expel the irritant, sometimes feeling like its trying to expel my very guts.
But I learned a new trick last year, and I used it. I spoke to my body.
Indeed I did. I commanded IBS to
back off. I told my body that it could
process food, it could absorb the nutrients and it could expel waste
efficiently and painlessly. And even as
I writhed and groaned I spoke aloud to my body, I demanded that it calm itself and
reminded it that it has the power to heal, to repair, to revitalize and to find
divine balance.
And a strange thing happened, within 15-20 minutes my body calmed and I
was able to sleep through the night.
This has happened many times before and this simple practice actually
works, arresting a multi-hour process and resolving it quickly. Sounds pretty out there doesn’t it? How can talking stop an active process in
your physical body?
Sometimes It Takes A Leap Of Faith
Some say that all illness is psychosomatic, that every physical ailment
has a spiritual root and that every malady of the body is subject to the
strength of the mind (or the power of the spirit). The medical community calls
it spontaneous remission, when physical processes shift in a way that medicine
cannot explain.
Some call it faith.
I’ve not cured myself permanently yet, but along this journey I have
experienced incredible things, things I never knew were possible before. I have experienced within myself the power to bring healing to myself and to others through focus, through thought, through prayer and through my words.
But it’s still new to me. Sometimes my brain still struggles to grasp
the concept and to accept the possibilities.
When I first heard of speaking to your body I thought it absurd. It sounded so far-fetched I had to hear it over
and over before I decided to try it. Of
course I did not believe. Sometimes it
takes a push to spur that leap of faith.
So one night, when the IBS attacked I was in so much agony, that it spurred a decision that I was not going to
roll over and take a beating any more. I
grabbed onto the walls for support, I reached within myself for my faith and I
fought back. Through the agonizing pain, I fought back and doggedly refused to be beaten. I was surprised when the symptoms abated. After
almost a year of using this method, I am still sometimes surprised, I’m still
learning, I’ve not fully figured it out yet.
But I do know that that fighting spirit in me stands for something and
when it moves it moves with power.
Sometimes It Takes A Kick In The Ass
In this walk with chronic illness I think I’ve
been through every phase of the process, and I’ve made a few up along the way.
I’ve been through denial, through fighting
back, through getting my ass handed to me on a platter. I’ve been through resignation,
acceptance, adjustment. I’ve been through loss, grief, mourning, anger,
frustration, resentment and self pity. I’ve
been through believing, anticipating, hoping, expecting.
I’ve been through disappointment. I’ve been through despair. I’ve been through surrender. I have been through defeat. I’ve been through being so beaten down by the
whole process that I just want to curl up and let life do what it will with me.
Sometimes, when you’ve walked through a
challenge for a while you begin to get used to it. You start to adjust your expectations, you hunker
down in the rut and try to make yourself comfortable. You drop your hands and you stop fighting.
Toward the end of 2017 I got another kick in
the ass, life handed me a circumstance that I could never have imagined I would
walk through. It shattered my
perspective. It was a shock to my system.
It made me mad. And it got my gloves up.
This is my
fight song (Hey!)
Take back my
life song (Hey!)
Prove I'm
alright song (Hey!)
My power's
turned on
Starting
right now I'll be strong (I'll be strong)
I'll play my
fight song
And I don't
really care if nobody else believes
'Cause I've
still got a lot of fight left in me
I've still
got a lot of fight left in me
Bring It!
The pain in my tummy does not happen every day
and sometimes when it happens I am so weary I just give in to it and let it
have its way. But more often than not it
gives me a point of focus and it reminds me that I did not come here to roll
over and get my ass kicked, by CFS, by IBS, by life or by anything else. It reminds me that I am a fighter. It reminds me to get my gloves up.
So too the challenges that come remind me of
who I am. Strong, resilient, warrior spirit, powered by faith and covered by
grace.
They remind me that I do have the power in me
to get off the ropes, step into the ring, spit into my hand, raise my gloves
and say ‘Bring It!’.
Because a true warrior knows how to take a
beating and keep getting back up. And
that will to get back up, is the will that leads to victory.
Author’s note
It’s the start of a new year, a time when some look back
at the accomplishments of the previous year and the ways in which they have
grown, some look at their goals and what they have achieved, others look back
at what they have survived. It is a time
for warriors to rise up knowing that it takes a champion to make it through
what you’ve been through, and that same spirit will take you where you
need to go.
If you liked this post I would be so appreciative if you
would spread the word and like my author page on Facebook.
I bless you, I bless your journey and I am so happy to be
a part of it. May this be the year that
you stand without fear in the power, authority and magnificence of who you are.
Inspiration Links
* I am in no way affiliated with the sites that I link to
here. The messages presented are in
alignment with the thoughts presented in this post and they have inspired me, I
hope that they will inspire you too.
Fight Song – Rachel Platten https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xo1VInw-SKc
Hall of Fame – The Script ft. Will.I.Am https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mk48xRzuNvA
Kelly Clarkson - Stronger https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xn676-fLq7I
Photo Credit : fightingreport.com
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