In this day and age, it’s rather uncommon for people to think of the challenges they face or the maladies they suffer as having anything remotely meaningful to contribute to their lives.
In fact, we often consider these events to run counter to any meaningful purpose and indeed, many have resigned themselves to a belief that the conditions they struggle with have sucked all meaningful content right out of the very fabric of their existence.
Is it really so? Is there truly little or nothing of merit to be gained from the lessons that come from the trials and tribulations inherent in modern life, or from the quest for freedom from illness and suffering we so fervently seek?
In my own quest for freedom I came to learn that the first and most pressing need that took me in the direction of recovery from disease was this: Adjust the negative attitude, and end the personal hostilities.
Get over it, and get on with living your life.
Were it not for my disease, I’m certain I would not have learned this towering principle of self-healing and higher awareness in a timely manner.
In fact it was the emergence of Ankylosing Spondylitis that led me directly to the wisdom I needed to lay my personal struggles and emotional hardships aside. I mean, compared to AS, how bad could any of that stuff – the petty personal issues and emotional resentments – really be?
All the drama and self-image challenges I had meticulously focused on and actively fomented throughout my life soon paled in comparison to what became truly important – dealing with AS. I had found a larger goal, and a life mission: Discover a path to out-maneuver and outlive the autoimmune disorder, once and for all.
As I evolved beyond the need to find fault with myself and my condition, and moved beyond the bad habits of blaming and shaming those who had “victimized” me, an interesting development began to occur. The more I freed myself from the emotional stress and strain, the better I felt, and the more empowered I became.
With an emphasis on physical (and emotional) movement, including weight-bearing exercise, mental discipline and healing meditations, I began to steadily improve. I made the space for true change to manifest, and incrementally it happened. At long last I freed myself from the ravages of pain and suffering that had seemed so very insurmountable not so very long ago.
How did it come about? It all began with a simple adjustment in attitude, nothing more. This adjustment started a tiny snowball rolling down a hill, as they say, which inevitably agglutinated into a behemoth of power and force, bowling over the obstacles and nay-sayers in my way.
My hope is that you find it in yourself to reverse the resentment, anger, hopelessness, victimhood and other hurtful emotions you have borne for so long, and create the space for a true change of heart. This is the first step to lead you through the mist on your path of healing in body, mind and spirit.
Were it not for the adversities you’ve faced, you might never have found the way.
Peter