I learnt that I didn’t want to end up in one again anytime soon and that life is precious, really precious.
I can’t control everything; no matter how hard I try to achieve something or control a situation, I may not get the result I want and that’s ok. Everything really does happen for a reason and there is a lesson/learning from each event and circumstance that we need to consciously acknowledge. Lesson one was to worry less especially about what you can’t control or change. ‘Don’t worry, be happy’ (great advice, thanks Bob).
My second lesson was to ‘slow down’. Getting sick forced me to stop and re-evaluate my lifestyle. My stress levels needed to be addressed. I can’t continue to spend my life rushing from one place to another, I need to slow down. Yoga, meditation, breathing (yes just breathing!) and mindfulness have to be an integral part of my lifestyle moving forward.
I learnt to feel immense gratitude for fresh air, sunshine, freedom, health, family, friends, love and life, all the things you crave when lying on a hospital bed. Always be grateful, everyday, even for the smallest things in nature and all that surrounds you.
I learnt that growing old is confronting, your body begins to fall apart, especially if you don’t look after it when you’re younger. Sickness is everywhere in hospital. It has a smell and an energy that lurks in the wards, feeding on the helpless and weak. Yet the human spirit is strong, some people are fighting just to survive through the night. You can see the courage in some to heal and make it through, there is hope. I leant that doctors and nurses are the most incredible selfless people, living angels on earth.
I am not invincible, a big revelation for me. I am a healthy person, I exercise, eat healthy, don’t smoke, drink here and there and have a good balance in my life. But we still get sick; sometimes it is out of our control. No matter how many green juices, smoothies, kale and other super foods we eat, the body still gets weak and it is not immune to disease and sickness.
I truly believe if you give your body the best chance, if you respect and nourish it, then when you do get sick, you will have a better chance to fight and survive. Your body achieves what your mind believes, we are made up cells, all talking to each other, the power of positivity and belief is what can push you through the other side.
Nothing else really matters other than our health and loved ones…. Life is to be lived and enjoyed, we really don’t know what is going to happen from one day to the next, so make every day count. That doesn’t mean be reckless with your body, it’s the only one you have, love and honour it.
I learnt never to take anything for granted, especially your health and family, they are everything.