Inspired by my own perpetually-broken body, whilst trying to shake the phrase “injury-prone” from my own and others’ vocabulary when referring to me, I began to focus on the ‘positive’ side of my regular niggles and injuries. Positively, I know that when I do suffer an injury blow, I tend to recover “quicker than expected”, and to be “ahead” in terms of recovery stages. And so I began to wonder why. Discovering this answer may be relevant to people in need of a healing miracle.
My reaction to injury has a number of stages:
Stage 1: *Rolls eyes and sighs*
Unlike most traumatic experiences, where the sufferer experiences a host of other emotions before reaching this point, acceptance is actually my first reaction. I’m not sure why. Maybe because I have had so much experience in this area. Or more cynically, maybe I accept it because I expect it. I hope not, but it seems that the self-fulfilling ‘injury prone’ prophecy haunts me so frequently, that when I go for a period without injury my body clearly has an issue with it, and then conspires against me (or should that be, for me?) to fulfil my expectations. Casting aside the rather destructive reasoning behind my acceptance, we turn to how acceptance will benefit you. Acceptance is the first step on the road to a quick recovery. Despite the frustration, irritation and inconvenience of injuries, accepting that the injury exists – however big or small – will create in you a solution-oriented mindset where you can seek out knowledge of management and healing strategies from your own experiences, and others’. Accepting your injury, for example, makes you venture to a sports injury clinic to seek treatment rather than brushing it off as nothing. Nobody ever seeks treatment for a problem that they do not have. Do you go to the doctor for treatment when you’re healthy? I certainly don’t.
Acceptance is not only a requisite healing step for physical ailments. Emotional, mental and spiritual healing all rest on the premise of acceptance, without which true, complete healing will not occur. Miraculous healing testimonies talk about the moment of acceptance being the turning point on their road to recovery and eventual freedom.
“Acceptance in human psychology is a person’s assent to the reality of a situation, recognising a process or condition (often a negative or uncomfortable situation) without attempting to change it or protest. The concept is close in meaning to ‘acquiescence’, derived from the Latin ‘acquiescere’ (to find rest in).”
Again, once you ‘assent to the reality’ you are able to make well-informed, strategic decisions to find the quickest and most effective route to recovery. You are not blinded by a false hope that clouds your judgment saying ‘maybe it’s not that bad?’ or alternatively thinking it is worse than it actually is! Both are irrational and destructive thought processes.
‘Maybe it’s not that bad?’ vs ‘This is SO bad!’
By understating the severity of your condition you open yourself up to further injury and potentially exacerbate the problem. Recognise the issues, get help, and recover quicker! The latter situation, however is mentally draining, which will have an adverse effect on your injury, because – going back to an earlier blog post on the suggestive power of your thoughts – ‘thoughts are things’ (Prentice Mulford). And ‘what you focus on expands’. So when you focus on the problem, it grows and grows – both in your perception and reality – until it overwhelms you at times to a point of stagnation. You are frozen by the fear that the injury you are fighting is too big to overcome, and so you give up or slowly progress through rehab because ‘what’s the point? It’s going to take a long time to heal anyway.’
Your body helps you to achieve what your mind is focusing on. When your thoughts and actions are in conflict, your actions will fight to realign themselves with your thoughts. It is a natural process. Cogito ergo sum. I think therefore I am. Perhaps cuckolding Descartes’ pure intention in this phrase, my adapted interpretation is ‘what you think is what you are’. That is why there is so much literature based on the power of positive thinking and the power of a positive self-image, self-love and PMA (positive mental attitude), and – the most-used phrase of late amongst my colleagues – ‘positive self-talk’. I appreciate that the ‘it must be right because so many people can’t be wrong’ argument can be a very lazy one, so here is an everyday example of the power of your thoughts. Why are stressed individuals so frequently physically sick, fluey and miserable? Because stress (internal negative mental and emotional thought-habit) manifests itself in physical ways (external negative bodily reaction). Yet, most significantly, consider this: we have the power to control our thoughts so that seemingly unavoidable sicknesses brought on by stress can become a thing of the past. I know this from personal experience, and the experiences of friends and family. When stress and anxiety take residence in your soul, peace and good health are replaced by unrest and frequent sickness.
A TED lecture I listened to recently expounded upon this positive-thinking idea in a rehab context. As an athlete, an injury not only tests, but also hones your focus and perseverance. I always work hard and smart, yet it is usually during rehab periods where I am the absolute epitome of an elite athlete – great eating, work-outs, sleep and supplements. Yet, for Joe Bloggs, an office-worker with an injury, rehab may not be as formative nor as appealing. The reason why Cosmin Mihaiu’s idea is so wonderful is because it changes one’s attitude and mind. When playing these rehab games, the rehabber is thinking positively and enjoying the healing process. Positive thoughts lead to positive actions and quicker healing.
So try that positive thinking malarkey from today and see what positive changes occur in your life!
‘Acceptance is the key to convert momentary happiness to enduring happiness.’ (http://tinybuddha.com/blog/the-power-of-acceptance-stop-resisting-and-find-the-lesson/)
Self-discovery moment: I can be a person who is very accepting to the point of robotic acquiescence of the situation. Speaking yesterday with a friend we discovered that our reactions in traumatic situations can be to accept it and immediately to shut down emotions so as to allow ‘proper’ functioning to deal with the problem without the weight of emotions. “I just don’t have time to cry right now! I have to focus on resolving the situation.” I wouldn’t say that’s the best way to deal with things, because it creates an awful build up and spiritual blockage. In the past I could cry at the drop of a hat, and then I went through a long tearless period following a particularly difficult life experience. Holding it all in leads to apathy and distancing, so I’m learning to cry more – get it out, and then move on. Let’s call it ‘functional emotion’. And I’m finding that this process works a lot better. Acceptance + functional emotion allows me to keep smiling, recognise the beauty in every moment and every good thing on earth, and to remain appreciative of God’s miracles in my life.
P.S. Since this post was such a long one, I’ll have to write another about what practical steps I take to speed up my healing process. If you have any of your own miraculous healing stories or testimonies, share in the comments below or drop me an email. I’d love to hear from you! As always, like, comment, subscribe, and share please.
