There has got to be an easier way of surviving chronic illness!!!!! I suggest cheating. Cheat any way we can to get more comfortable, use less energy, and get farther down the path as quickly as possible. Okay, I guess we ought to do our cheating honestly.

Cheat! That works for me.

There are SO many ways to cheat (honestly) while we are on a healing journey. We will all have our favorites.

It has been through hearing others stories for so many years that I have picked up some great cheating methods. We are not here just to listen to each other whine, moan, groan and complain. More importantly, we are here to tell our stories which heals our souls while we are handing out nuggets of tips to others along the way.

No one person has the exact same experience as another. My health journey will be quite different from all of yours, yet there will be some similarities.

Over the years I have collected nuggets of wisdom and tricks from many others to make up my own personal toolbox that has gotten me through my journey with chronic illness.

As you make your personal toolbox with your individual nuggets, remember to share with others who cross your path. You never know what will help another get through their long-suffering days of chronic illness with more ease.

Today’s Cheat

I have been so ill for so long (just like the rest of you) that I don’t even think twice about cheating, on much of anything that will lighten this load.

Ponytails, no make-up, and comfy clothes have gotten me through the worse years.

Now that I am doing significantly better, I am finding new ways to cheat as I slowly finish digging myself out of a very deep dark hole.

I still do not have the energy it takes to get everything done that I want to do. Shoot, I don’t even have the energy it takes to conquer all of my “needs” much less my wants.

So, I am still cheating my way through this.

This morning I woke up with a little energy and a great attitude. So I utilized every drop of that precious energy. And I was tickled my Thanksgiving Day funk had finally passed.

• Took a fast shower and washed my hair first thing before any chance of crashing.
• Bounced 50 times on rebounder – practical “exercise” in the count of 50!!
• Made sure I got a tasty healthy breakfast to nourish my body for a good start.
• Did two loads of laundry, but NO folding — saves energy when we don’t fold!
• Rested in bed while my hair dried – the hot blow dryer drains my energy faster than anything.
• Got a little work done while I was in bed with my feet up to keep the inflammation down.
• Stuck fruit and veggies in the blender and drank down my lunch.
• Quickly stuck a few curls in my hair so Y’all could not see my dry ends.
• Slapped some make-up on in less than 5 minutes and did not care about every detail of any of it.
• Got dressed in basic jeans/shirt/flip flops for a meeting with a stress-management practitioner.
• Made TWO quick videos just before I walked out the door.
• Went to my appointment, came home, washed my face, changed into P.J.’s and crawled back in bed to rest from a busy day. That was at 3:30 p.m.
• Only got out of bed to grab a snack and more water.

There was a ton of cheating in my day and I am so cool with that.

For me, this is a lot to accomplish in one day. The key was getting back in bed every chance I could. I have so much inflammation that I cannot move around much or it messes with my heart.

Some days I can pull off a day like this and simply recover with a good night of rest. This has been a long time coming. It has taken years and years of taking care of myself day in and day out, over and over again. All the hard work has been worth it.

I am beyond tickled with the progress I have made. Finding ways to cheat has helped me get down this path quicker. While we are so ill, there just is not enough time, energy or money to get it all done.

Instead of giving up in despair, CHEAT. Instead of getting stuck in the yuck-and-muck of chronic illness without hope, do something —– ANYTHING that moves you forward. NO, nothing illegal or immoral. Cheating honestly is perfectly acceptable and sometimes even fun.

Maribeth Baxter, MBNC (Certified Mind-Body Nourishment Coach)

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