Getting Out Of My Chronic Illness Comfort Zone

Have you ever heard the quote “Get comfortable being uncomfortable”….?

That’s a clear statement for those of us living with a chronic illness.

Being diagnosed with a chronic illness can be unpleasant and uncomfortable. It flips our world on its head.

We confront new and uncomfortable circumstances in various ways often in which we learn to adjust and adapt.

For quite some time, I was very uncomfortable in my own body. Unnerved by challenges I’d never faced before. Unexpected and relentless seizures, medication side effects and navigating mixed emotions.

Many decisions needed to be made to point me in a direction that set the course leading to a possible cure.

This direction also lead to molding me into the woman that I am today. Yet part of that transition meant stepping out of my comfort zone.

As unprepared and uncomfortable as I was, I learned that a shift in mindset is a critical ingredient to adapting to change.

What does that shift look like? Here are a few examples:

• Looking adversity in the eye… and laughing
• Having a positive future vision, no matter how bad the current circumstances
• Getting back up when you fall down. (No matter how many times you fall down.)

If we stay in our comfort zones, we risk becoming stagnant. Turning down opportunities, avoiding new experiences, and missing out on learning new skills or coping strategies. Then becoming unmotivated, and stuck in a rut.

Just because this illness is IN our lives, doesn’t mean it OWNS our lives!

What does stepping out of your comfort zone do for you?

• It promotes self-growth
• You discover what you’re passionate about
• Helps cope with change
• You’ll begin to find yourself
• Puts YOU in the driver’s seat of your life
• Takes your journey of self-discovery to the next level
• Fuels your life with confidence

Wherever you are in your mindset journey, know that it’s never too late to make a shift and keep going!