How do you cope with illness?
This topic contains 9 replies, has 4 voices, and was last updated by 
Bruce Hoag 6 years, 10 months ago.
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Topic
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How do you cope with illness?
How do you keep everything going when you’re too tired to concentrate or too sick to get out of bed?
Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy1 user thanked author for this post.
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Replies
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Bruce, I wish I had a great answer for this one! I lost a lot of ground since I tore my retinas last year. It feels like it will take forever to gain back the momentum I had then. So frustrating!
An army of minions would be nice. Or a business partner. For most of us, working online is a solitary endeavour.
Sometimes you can power through difficulties and sometimes, sadly, we are stuck when illness or other problems overtake us.
Norma Esler
Sign up for a daily dose of Inspiration at normaesler.com.
Inspiration for Your Best Year Ever!1 user thanked author for this post.
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I know that it’s been rough for you lately, Norma.
The solitariness is much more acute online, too. It’s not as if people are physically coming to your place of business every day. And all of us need some contact with people from time to time.
There’s so much potential in this forum.
It’s just possible that some loose “partnerships” will be formed.
I hope, too, that those who are within a reasonable proximity of one another will make the attempt to meet in person.
Take care of yourself.
We’re here for you.
Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy1 user thanked author for this post.
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I hope that you’re continuing to improve, Norma.
No need to name names. Just think about it, but is there someone in this forum that you could work with to help you with some of your more immediate challenges?
If so, then PM them.
If not, then why not ask a question that describes the kind of help that you need?
Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy
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Hi Bruce,
I don’t know whether you have a partner to tend to you in times of illness. But regardless of that, once you have a debilitating illness that, by definition, prevents your brain and body from engaging properly in business matters, then it is time to listen to your body and rest.
Very simple and obvious advice I know, but our physiology is designed to tell us when to slow down, take a break and rest up.
Get well, recharge the batteries and be ready and raring to go upon recovery.
If we ignore what our bodies tell us we are doomed to suffer longer, and delay recovery… in some cases perhaps permanently!
Fit brain and body equals a healthy business.
3 users thanked author for this post.
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You’re right, Les, about the need to look after yourself when you’re sick.
The thing I was trying to draw out of people was that, as Norma has said, the nature of what we do is isolated.
Hardly anyone, and sometimes that means us, too, understands what we’re doing.
It’s not as though we can ask our neighbor to keep an eye on things for a few days so we can rest.
And if you’re business isn’t sufficiently mature, then you have to keep your hand on the tiller regardless.
All of us get sick, have surgery, or have to deal with emergencies of what kind or another. I just wanted to hear from people how they dealt with their businesses in those circumstances.
Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy1 user thanked author for this post.
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Hope you are better now Bruce.
I guess I cope by fighting it.
Illness can be pretty brutal and at best limits you and at worst shuts you down. Last year I had three eye surgeries and with activity restrictions I lost a lot of productivity, not to mention physical fitness as I gained a few pounds. This year I had a week with a bad stomach bug, fever and chills included.
The things I am mentioning here are pretty obvious and often mentioned before, but the good stuff usually is obvious and mentioned before.
1. The ancients said there are 7 things that affect our health.
What and how we eat, drink, breathe, move, think, rest or recover and our heredity-which we now call our genes.
2. An ounce of prevention is worth a week in the bed. If we don’t have time to focus on those 7 things, then when will we have time to do the important things that keep us busy when we come down sick and can’t work several days?
We all think we are superman or superwoman, that is if you look at how we neglect ourselves and expect to stay on our feet. Few people eat a decent diet, take enough supplements, exercise reasonably, get enough sleep and take the time to unwind and enjoy life.
My daughter in law is expecting and she avoids crowds, uses hand sanitizer, washes her hands frequently, home schools her present child and gets her rest to avoid the flu. So far so good. The flu has been rampant here, so she is beating the odds.
3. When you are sick, you are sick. You just can’t demand so much from yourself. You might lengthen the illness or set yourself up for another illness as you run yourself down. Our family often has a cold that turns into sinus and then pneumonia. I take colds much more seriously now and with humidifiers and supplements, extra rest and more liquids, especially fresh juices I try to beat the next illness in the chain before it hits. I just accept being sick. So I am sick, I will just have a lighter day with being sick just another thing on my to do list. I will mark it off tonight as something I did, focusing on my recovery work. I am not trying to be sick, I am recovering, but if I say eye surgery or sick or whatever is something I am doing, I can ease up on myself and think I am not slacking off, I have to do this “thing.”
4. When you can’t work or just don’t feel like it, then play. I don’t mean sports, just play at working. I was in bed sick recently and couldn’t imagine doing anything. I put on some youtube documentaries to nap by and soon had a few thoughts. I got a notepad and every five or ten minutes wrote down some ideas. I played at working. The truth is if I hadn’t slowed down I wouldn’t have thought those thoughts. I made a pretty good to do list for when I felt better, so that was productive time.
5. Don’t let an illness train wreck your routine.
I vowed to exercise every day this year. Hard to do when you can’t keep liquids down. At the time I usually exercise I grabbed a barbell and did a few biceps curls. Just 5 minutes. I didn’t exercise my body much, but I did exercise the exercise habit. Soon I was back in my routine, but if I had quit doing anything when I was sick I would have probably stayed quit.6. Plan ahead. I am prone to bronchitis and I can’t record when I have it, but I can write. So I write my scripts and outlines to record when I can’t stop coughing and when I am better I focus on recording.
7. Remember the word Anyway.
There was this motivational poem I once saw that focused on the word anyway. I remember a little of it.
Life is hard, live life anyway.
Love often hurts, love anyway.
You have setbacks, but if you don’t stop you will win anyway.I have the word Anyway on my refrigerator to remind me if I don’t give up, no matter the set backs and problems, I will win anyway.
8. See the big picture.
When you are sick it is a good time to appreciate the things that are good in your life. I am sick, but I have a roof over my head, there are people that are sick and don’t have a roof over their head… Life is short, appreciate your time, realize there aren’t a lot of ideal days, so make the best use of all days.9. Remember that if this isn’t the one thing that kills you, it will probably pass.
There will only be one cause of death for us. Some things may add up, but only one will be the actual cause of death. Chances are whatever you are suffering from isn’t that last fatal one. I know we can have conditions that follow us through out life. When you have such a condition it doesn’t hurt to believe there is a purpose or reason for it. I am not saying not to try and recover, I am saying it has a purpose.I know I am not the same man I was before I went blind. I would like to think I am a better man now. Being blind was scary, it was frustrating, at one time I pondered suicide, but it had its purpose and in more ways than one, “Now I see.”
Best to all, especially those that are suffering,
Scott Hogue CChH
Scott Hogue CChH
Follow me in the "Use What You Learn Challenge" as I create a website using what I learn from Sean that is a Platform for my niche:
http://www.threestepstowealth.comThe thread on this group that explains it:
http://preneurpal.com/forums/topic/own-the-game-and-win-it/#post-17471 user thanked author for this post.
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Have you lost your sight, Scott?
Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy -
I did go blind in 2011 after my last mission trip to Africa. The dehydration pulled the retina and clouded the vitreous fluid in my eyes. The first surgery was a disaster and I was soon black as night blind in one eye as almost the entire retina came loose and still couldn’t see much out of the other eye. Two more surgeries that year saved the eye and restored some sight. Over the years the retina laid back down more flat and recovered a fair amount, but with a surgically induced hard cataract and glaucoma I could hardly see even with glasses and contacts.
Last year I went back to the world famous Dr. Ming Wang (he said it was too soon to do more surgery in 2012, he did not do the first three surgeries, but when the first one failed I kept hearing about him and his amazing results in cases like mine so I got a second opinion from him in 2012 and he said wait, the retina wouldn’t withstand more trauma now) and he operated three times last year, twice on my worst eye and once on my better eye. I still have some problems, but miraculously don’t wear glasses or contacts anymore. I have a near eye and a far vision eye and I cope with that. I am certainly not complaining about the floaters or the blind spots at the edges of my vision, I was pretty much blind all over before. The surgery also corrected the glaucoma I had developed by removing scar tissue and opening drainage. I can drive at night and I don’t even use eye drops now unless they are artificial tears for the occasional dry eye. All of the surgery has damaged the nerves in my corneas some and they aren’t as sensitive to produce the signal to make tears. I don’t feel my eyes getting dry until they are pretty dry.
It is just so amazing that it just strikes me at times when I look up and can tell the time on the clock across the room or see the date on my watch. I just have to stop what I am doing and look at the clock or my watch or a business card that not long ago I struggled to see wearing both contacts and glasses in bright light up close. I can use an ATM machine without feeling for the numbers or straining to see the screen and that is so odd that I always start by feeling for the numbers still. I realized that month by month I had pretty much let my life get smaller and smaller, letting my wife do more and more of the vision work as my vision failed. I can read the email on my phone and the texts now. I just hated it when people sent me texts before, I had to zoom the screen, get in a dark place and turn the screen brightness wide open.
I went my last visit this week to Dr. Wang and was released. I have 20-20 vision in my far eye and 20-40 in my near eye, but see well with it up close. They say with glasses I could qualify to fly again, but that is an expensive hobby.
Still, I could hire a flight instructor to fly with me and not have to pass a flight physical or recertify and still take the yoke. I bet I fly a plane again that way before I die. Ought to make a bucket list.
Tuesday on the way back from the eye doctor my wife asked me if I would ever go back to Africa again. It is her greatest fear. Twice I have come back more dead than alive and she is afraid she will lose me. She is handicapped and depends a lot on me. I told her I might. I can see again and my health is better. I told her not to worry about it. I had already been thinking about it. The memories of the children haunt me. I am not young anymore Bruce. I am afraid I may be too old to play Indian Jones anymore. But if I could go one more time with my experience and the contacts I have made, it might make a big difference. I like the idea of going to the orphanages, churches and the farm I helped set up by the grace of God for sort of a victory lap, but when I get over there I can never resist going just a little farther this time.
I am a blest man,
Blessings to you Bruce,
ScottScott Hogue CChH
Follow me in the "Use What You Learn Challenge" as I create a website using what I learn from Sean that is a Platform for my niche:
http://www.threestepstowealth.comThe thread on this group that explains it:
http://preneurpal.com/forums/topic/own-the-game-and-win-it/#post-1747 -
You are, indeed, a blest man Scott. You have more sight than I do.
I was given glasses when I was four, and that was back before the ophthalmologists could shine a light in your eye and determine the prescription from it.
The glass ones left a dent in my nose. During the summer, I remember my friends holding my glasses in the sunlight, and that the paper on the ground would start to smoke.
About age 7, I got plastic lenses.
At age 16, I got contact lenses. For the first time I had depth perception. Without them, I can’t see well enough to drive.
One eye corrects to 20/20. The other just helps out a little.
To go through what you have and come away with near perfect vision is amazing.
It’s a gift.
Now I’m going to give you some advice.
Your wife needs you. You’ve admitted that.
Much as you like going to Africa, you need to stay home and look after her.
It’s by the grace of God that you have your sight back.
Use it to look after her.
Bruce Hoag PhD
The Internet Marketing Psychologist
The Mindful Writer - for deep and persuasive copy
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