Lessons Learned
By: Lynne Matallana
There was a time in my life when I was obsessed with the clock on my bedroom wall. As I spent day after day lying in bed, feeling completely defeated by fibromyalgia, I would look at the clock and imagine the hands spinning forward as fast as they could, like some cartoon demonstrating the passage of time.
I kept thinking, with time, I would get better! But instead, time just dragged forward slowly, ever so slowly, making each moment in pain seem like an eternity. Every day I felt like I had accomplished an incredible feat just by surviving the constant, life and time-alteringpain of fibromyalgia. But just surviving wasn’t enough
When I finally stopped waiting for “time” to fix my pain and started to find ways that I could make the most of each moment, time once again became a precious thing to me.
I am often asked how I went from lying in bed for two years to running the National Fibromyalgia Association. I believe that finding a purpose for my life, using my time constructively, and focusing on what I could do instead of what I couldn’t do, helped me to once again appreciate the value of time and use it wisely. Once that happened, things changed and I was able to enjoy each moment of the journey I was taking: the journey of getting my life back, despite pain.
I think surviving the challenging times in our lives is a show of personal strength and we need to recognize and celebrate these major accomplishments. Every time we aren’t defeated by the obstacles that stand in our way, and instead, we turn those challenging times into the inspiration that motivates us to move forward and make our dreams and aspirations come true, it is a huge victory!
I know living with fibromyalgia is challenging and choosing to think in a positive manner is not always easy. But I do believe you will be surprised, like I was, to find that one of the most powerful tools to help you in your pain journey is to not let time slip away, recognize the positive things you do experience and focus on the good times!
Sending you gentle hugs~
Lynne
