Pain: The Great Teacher

I've been absent from blogging for weeks now due to a new role at work -- which for many reasons is occupying a lot of my time. I considered skipping this month's Self-Discovery Word by Word but decided last minute on a beautiful Sunday afternoon to make sure I contributed. After all, as someone who writes about her recovery from severe neck and back pain, how could I consider not writing about 'pain', this month's word?

If you're new to my blog, you can read the long version of my struggle with pain here. But a quick synopsis is that I had repetitive strain injury (RSI) from poor posture and long hours spent hunched over my desk. Unfortunately, I also threw out my back last year and it has taken me a long time to recover from it. But with the help of an excellent physio (physical therapist), I am now essentially pain free.

And what did I learn? Pain is a great teacher. I would say that the most important thing is that everything in life is temporary. One minute you go from a carefree lifestyle and the next moment you are in debilitating pain, worried that you won't be able to continue earning a living. But it's not limited to that one experience. Everything you have in this life, on this earth, can be taken away from you in a short moment. We forget that most times.

But lying awake in the middle of the night with a neck ache so bad that you can barely sleep makes you acutely aware of how precious things like your health truly are.

I was lucky enough to find someone who could help me get better -- to lead me through the pain and out to the other side. And I think that's true of any kind of pain -- physical and emotional. Although life is tough on this planet, we are not alone and I think one of the most important things to realize that there is help out there to get through just about anything.

Pain has been a great teacher to me: it is tough but it is not insurmountable, particularly with help. On the other side, life looks different -- you realize there's just not enough time in this short life to take things for granted.

This post is part of the Self-Discovery Word by Word Series. For more information and to participate, check out November's kick-off post here.

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