Mind Over Matter

I am a huge believer that our minds can play nasty tricks on us!

Why did I start my blog entry this way? Because it is the time of the year when everyone gets sick!

Never mind the uncomfortable coughing and wheezing the common cold provides us with. This time of year mother nature throws us a hard ball: the flu. To protect ourselves from being thrown into complete paralysis from this disgusting illness, we have to endure being injected with a bit of the flu virus so our bodies will learn to combat the disease. How's that for fun?

I think, however, that as important as getting immunized to prevent an illness such as the flu, we also have to believe that we cannot get sick. A girl across the hallway has mono. Now, mono (mononucleosis) is also referred to as the "kissing disease" as it is a disease passed on through saliva. None of us, I'm sure, will be making-out with this girl any time soon, yet people worry, since we are living in such close quarters, about getting the illness. I mean, I am doing my best to help nurse the poor girl back to health by keeping her happy and giving her meds that will aid in her healing, but whenever I go near her or in her room, I can feel the illness. It's so gross! But I believe that if I keep my mind set on the fact that I am NOT going to get sick, I won't. It's like any sort of competition or fight, be it physical or emotional. If you believe in yourself enough, you'll have a better chance of making it out alive.

I'm a perfect example! A couple years ago the Norwalk virus was going around. Basically, if you get this virus, you spend 24 in the can because you have stuff coming out of both ends in a non-stop fashion. It is HIGHLY contagious! My sister got this the day we were to move out of our house in Oakville and into a tiny apartment where we would be spending the next 3 months. I definitely know that I picked up the bug because I felt more sick than I ever had in my life. I would sit on the floor in a blanket and shiver and shake for hours, but I told myself that I wasn't sick, and that I wasn't going to throw up, and that I WAS going to make it through without any of the nasty side effects. You know what? I didn't throw up once! Not once, because I believed strongly enough in the fact that I could not and would not get sick (although I'm pretty sure I spread the bug to everyone who came near me for a week...oops!)

The moral of my story is, that no matter what, you should believe and stand up for that belief with every single ounce of your being. It could save you from puking your guts out.

Thank you.