Our wellness has many components. Sometimes we can do everything “right” in our life by staying physically and mentally healthy and still get a medical diagnosis that changes everything.
I know for me, being diagnosed with cancer young wasn’t something I felt prepared to deal with. It was shocking and for a period of time, I would wake up in the morning, thinking that I had just had the worst nightmare of having cancer. It was awful and I literally mourned everything in my life pre-diagnosis. I would have done anything to go back to that time. I was a mess, but as I discovered, it was all part of the process.
What I have learned, though, is that we can only focus on what we can control. And, we can do everything in our power to put ourselves in the best position we can, to weather the storms that come our way. The good news is that we can control a lot of things.
Staying physically healthy is obviously important, but so is our mental health. Often times, we make small compromises with our mental health or we completely overlook it. I look at our mental health as a foundation for our overall health, followed closely by our diet. I know for me, when I have gone through anxiety and depression, it definitely influenced my physical health and what I ate. When I have been in toxic relationships, I had physical ailments that I believe came from me not taking care of my mental health.
How are you doing with taking care of yourself? Are you eating well and exercising? Are you practicing enough self-care and taking care of your mental health?
