HOW TO STAY HAPPY

Life is hard in this world but it’s particularly difficult when you have a chronic illness or disability. Being disabled and having health issues make us feel like we don’t deserve it. It can be incredibly isolating, especially if your whole being is struggling with different things at once. Luckily many of us get along really well with others and have support networks that are close to our hearts. But if you’re not getting enough support from other people around you then those relationships might fall apart.

It's been known for a long time now that when we give less than we expect, that is not good and can lead to feelings of isolation, fear, and anxiety. The problem is, these feelings have nothing to do with the person that you’re suffering this from. It also has no place within your own life and they just go away on their own as the months pass on.

We live in an age where almost everyone feels isolated because of their condition or illness. It’s sad when things aren’t working out as we planned, that feeling will always come back and take over. And it’s often easy to let your fears and worries run off into overdrive and become unbearable. We’re bombarded with thoughts all the time, some of which are not good and there is only so much we can control.

The simplest way is to follow what’s going on in the news and see if anything new happens when you look up information. For example, last year I had my first heart attack. That was one of my worst periods in quite some time and I couldn’t believe it. There were days that I didn’t want to even think about it, but this wasn’t normal for me and I had never suffered a heart attack before. These symptoms lasted over four hours but at one point the pain took hold of me and I completely lost consciousness. This incident changed my whole outlook on everything and made me more aware of the situation. I had this realization that no matter when I woke up and started this episode of “The Voice Of God” or whatever part of the program that I chose to watch, someone was praying for me somewhere.

Things keep coming up all the time and I am usually able to connect them to something else that is happening in my life when I turn back to it. When faced with this sort of personal struggle, you tend to stop and reassess your view of life after you’ve put your hand up.

In addition to following events that happen in the world, try and find joy in the small moments you still have time to enjoy that you do. Not even when I’m at work do I get a break. If I’m walking down the street and another car comes through me in front of me, no matter how angry or upset I am about that situation, I am thankful that there is such a thing as traffic lights. Even though I cannot control the light, I am relieved that I don't have to constantly drive past people with lights on. Instead, I have the little moment to appreciate the fact that, even though it seems impossible now, there will be better days ahead.

When I am sitting on a park bench playing board games, instead of going for a walk I am choosing to sit here on the bench, rather than heading for the nearby forest. Just enjoying the fact that I am doing something creative instead of staring at a computer screen.

When there are times in each day that I wake up and I know that, even though I might be tired and maybe I need more sleep than usual, I will still be able to get up and continue with the daily activity that I enjoy doing.

And, despite what your body says, there is no lack of joy when you look at the flowers or fruit that grow in the garden. Whether you have a cold or allergy season in your life, you might just find yourself smiling more and more this time of year. Especially if you had a very cold winter, I find myself laughing more than usual and loving the fact that, even though there are cold days when I have to wear my jacket inside, there are the days when I look at my gardening produce and smile.

Sometimes, when I look in the mirror the first thing I do is go, “Hello universe …” and say hello to myself. By practicing saying “Hello Universe,” at least in my case, I find myself more relaxed and happier.

If you are truly lucky then you'll get a visit from your favorite teacher. Some days he/she finds you difficult and makes you cry, others she/he laughs at you and gives you compliments that you have been wanting to hear all year but not a lot of times can hear it right now. In any case, it is often the same old scenario when we have to do this as our teachers did so many years ago, and even in some cases, I find that they are the best kind of visits for me personally. My sister, who teaches music school, told me once that she used to teach in elementary schools because she thought everyone looked the same. Now she taught me things that are all real and I think her experiences as a musician might help me in my learning process.

Sometimes, especially when I am stressed, I would do anything to shut someone out of my mind. I would scream my head off or yell my name and call out my frustrations while making sure that someone knows that they are heard. Sometimes, even when I am in pain and I am unable to move, I can still scream my name and shout my heart out and cry that pain away. That is not an option for everybody, but I hope these tips can help you to stay happy and stay healthy as well.