THE CHALLENGE OF NEW CHALLENGES

I know I am confusing you! I do not mean to be obtuse…it is just that as I write this blog post, I am thinking about a conversation I had last week at a birthday party. We are all in the same vintage…the birthday boy, Steve turned 70. Talking with people I have known for years, as well as acquaintances, I mentioned that doing things that are new to me bring along anxiety. Believe me, these are things, that at another time in my life, would probably not have elicited the same response. But I have noticed that as I get older, I am more mindful of the steps that go into reacting, and frequently, I think about my lack of abilities, rather than my capabilities. Counterintuitive as this may sound, although my life’s experiences have vastly increased over the years, my knowledge that I may “be in over my head,” well, “rears its ugly head! When we are young, each new experience prepares us for the next, and we are constantly learning and growing. But as we age, there are fewer unique experiences, so we need to create those patterns in our brain for ourselves.

Bear in mind, as I say this, that I am the same person who went to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, twice out of three times, by myself many years ago. I am a “put one step in front of the other” kind of girl. But that was then, and I was on the automatic pilot of life. Now, I am at the part of life that says, perhaps you should think about the steps you need to take. This revelation does not stop me, it just adds a little stress to the “doing!”

These thoughts bring me to the ostomate who awakens from surgery, with either a planned or emergency stoma, and all that he/she or I have/had ahead of us experience and learn. In reality, there are few changes to the body as visual immediately. Stomas rank up there with “now what do I do to get back to my life?” There is the acknowledging, then the accepting, then the caring for, then the moving forward, then the new language, then the countless emotions that live inside of all of us. This new challenge has so many new challenges.

My mind continues to tell me that the stress of new things is energizing, and can have an amazingly positive outcome in certain situations. My goal is to always learn more, “move one foot in front of another,” and most importantly of all, to help others in their first steps, their biggest steps. The chain of support we create will enhance all of us, and the knots we tie make us stronger than we ever thought possible.