I laughed out loud when I first saw this graphic. It 100% described my reality at the time, as I was (patiently?) working my way through another stretch of long covid symptoms, which were again having a significant impact on my life.
I was consistently doing the “right things”, and most days I felt like I was moving in the right direction. This reminded me that I wasn’t necessarily experiencing a recovery problem. Rather, I had an expectation problem.
I wanted my life back. The version I was accustomed to. What I was wanting and to some degree expecting to happen, wasn’t happening. But if I was being honest with myself, having been through this previously, it was happening. It simply wasn’t happening on my preferred timeline.
It’s often the time element we struggle with. There are a lot of things at play here. We’re older, and yes – to some degree this equates with things taking longer. And, it can be challenging to consistently do the things that healing and recovery require. And, life is full and can be messy.
Perhaps the biggest influence on all this; we’re saturated in a culture of quick and easy, fueling our expectations. When we’re not feeling great (or getting impatient), a (quick) search for information will (instantly) flood you with (seemingly easy) ideas for pills, procedures, products and experts who will solve that problem for you. For sure, there are times when those inputs are necessary. But they all fall somewhere on the spectrum of essential to helpful to useless to dangerous, and it’s big, big business. It is buyer beware.
Why so hard? Maybe because it requires us to acknowledge our limitations, and how little control we actually have over lots of stuff. We probably already feel enough of that – consciously and subconsciously. And that’s sure uncomfortable.
Recovering? First – remember that your body has remarkable ability to heal. Next: focus on the things you can control. The things your body needs the most. Sleep. Movement. Nutrition. There are no hacks, no shortcuts. (That one is still on the board!) Of course, consult your doctor if you’re unsure. Most of the time, we’re on track. Even if that track looks like the one on the right.
Patience just might be a superpower. But for sure, the whole thing gets easier when our expectations are in check.
This one has been on the whiteboard a few times. (For good reason.) Practice it daily;
Use what you have.
Do what you can.
And trust the process.