Except for a few very slow attempts at chasing down my belligerent toddler-age son, I’ve been flat on my back with my right leg elevated all week since having surgery to repair a partially torn medial meniscus. After showering this morning for the first time in – I’m going to keep that secret to myself – a while, I again realized how much it really takes to stay in shape, to stay well, and it takes way more than just working out. I’m past my prime, so if I want to move forward, I have to treat and heal the things that have been holding me back.
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| 4 days post-op w/one bandage off |
I get real about real fitness on this blog, and real fitness ain’t a six-pack under a muscle shirt or scrawny legs in a mini skirt. A lot of self-labeled fitness and wellness experts out there just want to sell you products to lift and tone your face or your butt. But real fitness and wellness means we do what we need to do to improve in all areas of our life: social, emotional, physical, spiritual, environmental, mental…
Sometimes real fitness means surgery to fix what’s been broken by too many squats. Sometimes it means going on anti-depressants because all the prayer and church and yoga in the world can’t keep the crazy thoughts out of your head when you’re severely anxious and have post-partum depression. Sometimes it means a root canal to stop the spreading infection from an abscess that could be traced back to too many nights in college falling asleep while studying with a bowl of ice cream. Sometimes it means diastasis rehab because you’ve done too many crunches and carried two babies in your belly. Sometimes it means asking a chiropractor to help realign and unwind the tight places from stress and sleeping on too many pillows.
What does staying well mean for you? What broken, tight, torn or anxious places in your body, mind or soul need a little re-shaping in the near future? Diastasis rehab took me six weeks, but my core was stronger afterward. Anti-depressants lasted almost two years, but I can think straight now. Knee surgery lasted 45 minutes followed by a few days of down-time, but now I’ll be able to get on the floor to do pigeon pose and play with my kids without severe knee pain from a years-old injury. If you want to move forward, what things do you need to treat and heal?
I enjoyed this blog.. healing is hard sometimes ( well, most times ) and it involves a decision, and action and a persistence… good job on healing! I still have a lot to heal, but I am praying that Jesus will teach me how to start. Thanks for sharing.
Amen, Heather! Now that I am more than 5 weeks post-op, and my diastasis is nearly closed, I cannot express how grateful I am for these healings. One was done naturally, and one needed some technology. How awesome to serve a Creator and Lord who can use so many avenues to touch and tone our lives back to a healthy place!
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