Is Family Part of Your Wellness Plan?

There are many types of family.  There's the most obvious, the biological family.  Then the self-chosen family or the family who chose you to be family.  You may have a family of co-workers, a family of neighbors, a family of health professionals.  Or they could be considered part of your team.

Whoever you consider your family to be, are they part of your healing plan or your illness plan?  If there is a group of individuals who support you, cheer you on and see who you are beyond your illness(es), they would be considered your wellness team.  If you are surrounded by people who say they care and want the best for you, but they tell you how to feel, when to get better, that you're too sensitive or dramatic and maybe even treat you with pity, as if you are unable to do anything for yourself, they are on your illness team.

Look around.  Pay attention.  You deserve respect, love, comfort and caring.  You and only you truly know what helps you feel better and who you trust to be on your wellness team.  Not even medical professionals can tell you what will make you feel better.  They can tell you what research has shown helps the majority of those who were part of the research study, but those treatments or medications that work for some, don't work for others.  It's very important, through the healing process, to surround yourself with supporters and cheerleaders.  Put your valuable energy into people who remind you of your strengths and of who you truly are.  Chronic illness, over time, can make us feel as though we are defined by our illness.  The loving and compassionate people around you can tell you that you may be experiencing chronic illness, but you are not illness.  These are the people who will not hold you back and who want to see you healthy.

My advice...if you choose to take it...

Slowly back away from the people who are on your illness team!  They are not helping you heal.



Here's the small print.  Although, it's not any smaller print than what I typed above because I wouldn't be able to read it :)
     I'm not a medical professional and I'm not intending to tell anyone how to treat their illness.  Please consider your own personal circumstances to assess whether or not this advice resonates with you.  It may not be your best option.  For some it'll be an option to take action on.


Thank you for reading, forwarding and following my posts!!!
Terri