There comes a time in your life when you begin to think the universe is conspiring against you. The last week has been that way for some of my friends and to be honest, it hasn’t been a bed of roses for me either. The pain that I was experiencing last year in my shoulder decided to come back this week. Just enough to make me uncomfortable doing my day-to-day activities. It was almost like it was teasing me. I decided to ignore it. It started hurting worse…ha. I felt like a kid who had his hands over his ears going “I’m not listening to you…” and then humming to myself. There are worse things in life than my pain and I know that.
Grief is also a kind of pain that hurts deeply. I read that the purest pain you have known comes from grief. For those of you just entering the first stage this week, you are still at the shock stage. Once you get over the initial shock, you will be looking for emotional release. During this time, your friends can help you cope. This stage is usually where I can help. Laughter is one of the best things for you because as you know it produces endorphins. As you know, endorphins are produced in the brain to help ease your pain. Basically, it’s like taking some morphine. So now I know why my friends keep me around. Ha. Apparently, chili peppers and chocolate can lead to enhanced secretion of endorphins. Ohhhh. Now it makes sense why that lady mixed those two ingredients together in one of my favorite movies…ummm. Have a peek for yourself:
After you have eaten your chocolate and looked at Johnny Depp, I mean watched the movie, go out for a run. Seriously, the next thing you need to put in your life to cope with your feelings is exercise. Just last week I surprised myself with a new time on this fake 5k I run in my head while I am on the elliptical machine. What do I mean by that? Well, each time I get on the machine I put a goal in my head to beat. Sometimes someone will help me out by “running” near me. In my mind, I beat them. Don’t judge. It works. I felt so much better last week that I kept going and was not tired at all. The endorphins were working.
The last thing I am going to recommend to my friends is to start a journal or even a private blog. Writing down your feelings can be very therapeutic. Trust me. Knowing I have an audience doesn’t change what I have to say; instead, it helps me to focus my message. What I would tell myself, I also tell my readers. I am living the burned hand theory daily.
“Every evening I turn my worries over to God. He’s going to be up all night anyway.” ~Mary C. Crowley
