(With a bit of wisdom from my favorite Navy Seal philosopher- Max Machowicz.)
Part II. So, It’s Only A Thunderstorm. It’s Not A Hurricane. Now, What Do I Do? (With Inspiration From Pearl Jam’s Mike McCready)
Large fingers pushing paint
You're God and you've got big hands
The colors blend... the challenges you give man
Seek my part... devote myself
My small self... like a book amongst the many on a shelf
Sometimes I know, sometimes I rise
Sometimes I fall, sometimes I don't
Sometimes I cringe, sometimes I live
Sometimes I walk, sometimes I kneel
Sometimes I speak of nothing at all
Sometimes I reach to myself, dear God (Pearl Jam- “Sometimes”)
“All negative emotions are attached to some fear, without exception.” Max Machowicz
“...The fact that we can change our feelings means we have power over them... Jake was now thinking about the things he could do, rather than dwelling on all the things that he could not do. His self talk was moving in a productive way.” Max Machowicz
Wow! It’s Not Anyone’s Fault! - This Just Happened...
Once I got past blaming the government, everyone who had been President of the U.S. in my lifetime, my favorite sports teams (for not winning championships), the Beatles (for breaking up), Guns N’ Roses(for breaking up), big business, my parents, my employers, my friends, anyone I ever met, and the God of every spiritual tradition in the world, I felt much better. Here’s some of what I’ve learned since accepting that I have UC, and choosing to adopt a positive goal oriented approach to living with this illness.
So, It’s Only a Thunderstorm, Not a Hurricane- Now, what do I do?
1. Find inspiration Do you find inspiration from famous people? If you do, here are some links of famous people living with Ulcerative Colitis (UC) or Crohn’s Disease. Pick out a name, “Google” the person’s name with, UC or Crohn’s after the name. Check out how this individual copes with the illness, then pick out someone else, and do the same thing. One person, who I find inspiration from is Pearl Jam guitarist, Mike McCready.
A. Mike McReady and Crohn’s Disease
In the following quote, Mike shares one of many “Crohn’s incidents” he has experienced as a member of Pearl Jam: "Playing onstage, I'm always aware of where the bathrooms are," he admits. "When Crohn's hits, I have to run, or it won't be pretty. It happened when we opened up for the Rolling Stones in 1997 in Oakland. "It was our first show with them," McCready continues. " Five minutes before we went on, I went up to (Pearl Jam frontman) Eddie (Vedder) and I said, 'Look man, can we play 'Sometimes'? — which is a slower song that I'm not really on. I was in pain. I went running offstage looking for a bathroom, and there wasn't one. Then, all of a sudden, there was one. It was a honeybucket. I heard my band play that song from inside a portable toilet!"
Mike speaks about his personal experiences with Crohn's disease and the importance of CCFA: "I know how devastating these diseases can be. I'd be playing a solo in front of 20,000 people when 'wham!' -- this searing gut pain would hit me and I could hardly play a note."
Being on the road made things even harder for Mike. "I was taking 140 pills a week. Some of the medications caused my face to completely puff up. I was pretty depressed. Then I found out about the CCFA and I realized that I was not alone." Mike doesn’t allow living with Crohn’s disease to keep him from doing what he is most passionate about, and I don’t believe that I should allow my Ulcerative Colitis to limit the things that I am most passionate about either.
Mike's PSA for the CCFA is here.
B. My Favorite UC or Crohn’s Video (Set to Pearl Jam’s Down)
If you live with one of these chronic conditions, or have a love one who does, it will be hard not to shed a tear when you watch this video:
2. Become willing to do what you need to do
(I am speaking only about my situation, not anyone else’s. I don’t know what anyone else should do, but I do know what works for me.) In my case, becoming willing has meant being open to using a combination of “traditional western medicine,” prayer & meditation, and nutrition to maintain my health. I don’t like taking any medication, but, 100 mg. of Asazan does a nice job of helping me stay in remission. Last fall, I had a few minor flares, and finally became willing to radically alter my nutrition. Since I began using the principles in Jordan Rubin and Joseph Brascoe’s Restoring Your Digestive Health, last fall, I have been healthier than I have been since I was initially diagnosed with UC in 1995.
I hope that you found this post useful! Please leave your comments below, or contact me directly. (My contact info is in the sidebar.)
Thanks for stopping by! Bill
Friday:
Part III. So, This is Only a Thunderstorm, Not a Hurricane- Now, What Do I Do? Continued
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