Chronic Warriors/Advocates/ #GPReporters – How We Approach Advocacy
How can we advocate with our numerous chronic illnesses, lift our communities by sharing our journey while speaking our truth with a positive voice and an uplifting message? We are, in many ways, ambassadors of chronic. We are serving, paving the way for others to gain access, as well as ourselves to attain better treatments, research, and quality of care/life/ towards cures.
One way we can achieve this goal for our own personal benefit and our community’s benefit is to speak positive words over ourselves. How could positive words be beneficial? They can change our lives! If you have ever bought a new car and suddenly noticed “Oh my gosh! There are _______cars everywhere!” Were there? Or were the cars front and center in your brain? If you have ever been told you are pregnant or want to be pregnant? Were there pregnant women everywhere? No, of course not! They were front and center in your mind. We, as advocates, can create an atmosphere of inclusion, love, encouragement, empowerment, and lead with a positive light. If I decide to share an event in my life, which is filled with news which might cause anxiety in our community, how do I post and still advocate in a positive way? One way is to state the optimistic pieces of our moments. For example: I am at a doctor’s appt or procedure, I do not know the outcome or perhaps what will be the absolute conclusion of this particular moment/day may be. How do I comfort myself and others, with few spoons? I choose to pull the projected good outcomes from every moment. My handicap access, the kind receptionist, the available seating, the kind nurse, etc. Whoever I encounter may be the part of the reason I am waiting a little longer today. My Faith in Faith of good outcomes has my mind, emotions feeling like if anything arises a referral will be in the works on my behalf. Seeing, being at peace, stating the good outcomes for ourselves within ourselves not only releases the “good vibes” we need to feel better, but it also does this “Perry Mason” type thing in our brains. Our brains are quite cool. They will gather evidence for the words we put out in our world. Going back to the aforementioned example of cars and pregnancy. We, our brains, gather facts for our declarative sentences. I say the clinic is certainly filled with kind compassionate people today… our brains will immediately begin to gather examples of this statement. If I state the opposite, this clinic is filled with mean people… you got it.. our brains begin gathering the evidence. Then our bodies join in the activity of negativity with physical symptoms from the toxicity produced. Do you see how the waves of stress can reek havoc upon yourself and others? Enough of this could lead to PTSD. I am sure if it hasn’t already there will be a term created for repetitive negativity and its harm in general much less to those of us with compromised autoimmune systems. Therein if this would create harm/toxicity. Would it not thereby make sense positive, hopeful, uplifting, informative, educational, empowering posts might create a lovely warm happiness in you. In many ways ready to conquer your day!
You have heard the phrase “Sticks and stones will break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” While on one level this statement works, on another, it is utterly so very wrong!! It takes a tremendous amount of work (spoons) to delete/erase/eradicate negativity, unkindness, and worse from our minds. The next best thing is to frame our thoughts and phrases into uplifting. Positive, optimistic, truths which speak Grace over ourselves. I am well aware how this is not an easy process, nor as fulfilling always as a full emotional vent. I am not saying one is wrong or right – I am saying there is evidence based criteria which may make you give thought about our options. Have you ever seen your kids when they are watching wrestling? Suddenly you have three kids wrestling, then before you know it someone is hurt. What we see, hear, or listen to influences our actions.
As an advocate, like many others, I have chosen not to comment on any political, current news, or hot topics. It is not because I do not have an opinion, nor because I do not care. I care very much and have a lot of opinions. When we post as advocates we are posting to and for all of our #ChronicWarriors. We used to hear the advice “do not write anything you wouldn’t want your Mother, Father, daughter, etc to read.” I look at it this way. We post for all our Warriors infants, in the hospital, tube-fed, PICC lines, Port-A-Caths, home-bound, children, teenagers, young mothers, young fathers, elderly all over the planet – we post for them all -every -single -time- we- post!