To,
10 Spiritual Tips
To Honor Your Spirit
February 2012 – Issue 12 – Spiritual Tips
Welcome to Part 5 of my 6 Part series of aspects to cover for Migraine health and well being.
Physical – Emotional – Intellectual – Social – Spiritual – Financial
Editors Note: What are you doing to sustain joy and hope in your life? How does spirituality fit in with such excruciating pain? Is it a disconnection from the spiritual that got us here in the first place? Did I do something wrong in past life or this life for that matter? When you have a migraine do you think you are disconnected from your spiritual beliefs? Here are some useful tips to help you remain connected between your pain episodes.
Part 5 – Spiritual Tips
Spirituality and religion are very controversial subjects. I have chosen to use the word spiritual to cover all faiths, beliefs, and religions in order to be inclusive. I believe that any faith, anything that helps give us hope during difficult times is useful and provides healing. Some of us already know that faith can heal in miraculous ways.
One of my favorite books by Linda Kavelin Popov called
A Pace of Grace
provides some wonderful insights for any faith. Having studied numerous religions, she has found a commonality between them all and refers to them as virtues. The virtues are: truthfulness, purity, discernment, peacefulness, forgiveness, thankfulness, and order, just to name a few.
“What you resist persists” is a new age saying I just hate. How can you not resist a migraine? The pain is excruciating. Especially when I get them 20 days per month - seriously! What I have discovered is that I can change how I respond to having a migraine. Ms. Popov says spirituality asks us to accept what is and that we actually devalue ourselves by resisting the truth and ignoring our needs, even our pain (Popov, 2004, p.163).
Here is a quote from her virtue of acceptance :
”Acceptance allows us to be open to the gifts and lessons in every situation life offers … acceptance leads to peace”
“The balance between acceptance and hope is your holy
ground”.
She also quotes the infamous Reinhold Niebuhr, an American religious philosopher:
”God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
The courage to change the things I can,
And the wisdom to know the difference.”
Occasionally I am thankful that I have been gifted with chronic fatigue syndrome, as this additional illness has helped me to accidentally find more effective help for my migraines and accept them into my life as a medical condition that, for me, may never heal. However, I will always remain hopeful – and hey Botox injections are getting amazing results with chronic migraines.
Linda Kavelin Popov’s book A Pace of Grace has inspired me to provide these spiritual tips:
Honor Your Spirit - My Top 10 Spiritual Tips
1. Be as present with others as you can;
2. Be accountable ”and learn from your mistakes – then every block
becomes a stepping stone";
3. Tune into your body and ask it what it needs, tune into your emotions too – make time to reflect or meditate - ”develop routines of reverence”;
4. Pray as often as you can;
5. Forgive yourself for being sick, or having a medical condition you can’t heal by yourself and accept that part of you that has migraines – a complicated medical condition;
6. Practice gratitude daily - start a gratitude journal. List 5 things every night that brought you joy through the day (your child’s laughter); list 5 things every morning that you are grateful for and that inspire hope (new migraine technology);
7. Be honest with yourself and others. Know your limits before over committing;
8. Set clear boundaries based on respect;
9. Speak to inspire not to discourage and be the person you want to be;
10. Listen with compassion and detachment, if
you can, and truly connect “spirit to spirit” to others around you – when you don’t have a migraine. When you are having an attack – listen to yourself with compassion.
Ask the Editor
Do you have a question you’d like to ask the editor on this topic? If so please
click here
to Contact Me. I will respond as soon as possible.
Your Input – Give YOUR Migraine A Voice
This is a safe forum to express your troubles – tell
your story
– show
your art
- find solutions with
new ideas
- and get
professional health advice
. Just click on the links underlined above if you would like to contribute.
Remember that your contribution will help others too! We are not in this alone, even though it feels like it most of the time. Our stories and input can help each other.
My Question to You
How does your chronic migraine pain, and the lifestyle it brings with it, effect your faith or spiritual connection? Where do you still find hope and joy?
Click here
to tell us.
Other Migraine Aids
Please
click here
to visit my pain relief store where I have gathered all the products I use to help stop my migraine attacks.
The next issue is: Issue 13 - Part 6 –Financial Pain
Chronic Migraine Equals Financial Impact
FACT! I don’t know about your situation, financially, but I have had to reinvent myself so many times in my life to suit my migraines, it is kind of ridiculous. I choose now to see it now as personal growth, but being really positive is not always possible for me. Being real is more important to me...
I hope you ENJOYED this issue of The Pain Chronicles!
If you’ve missed an issue
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to read the back issues.
And before I forget!
Please send this to your friends and family. It’s time to spread the word about Migraines and educate our loved ones! They can click on this link to
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as well.
Talk to you next month, until then, I wish you many Migraine FREE days.
From Holly at
www.MigraineSavvy.com
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