Out of Hibernation

We have finally come out of the deep freeze.  Weather here has returned to normal.  I, too, am returning to normal.  For the past couple of days, I've seen early warning signs that I was not moving in a healthy direction.  There were a lot of little indicators that I was not functioning at my best.  I stayed up later than usual, ate too much, watched more TV, left dirty dishes in the sink, didn't make a daily to-do list, didn't go to church on Sunday (stayed in my pajamas all day, in fact), didn't write my blog for two days, and occasionally engaged in fantasy thinking.  One of the most interesting indicators I have is how I wake up in the morning.  When I am doing well, I wake up early and have no desire to stay in bed.  When I am not doing as well, I sleep later and do not want to get up.  The bed feels warm, comfortable, and inviting.  That feeling of wanting to stay in bed is how I woke up all my life, until recently.  I prefer feeling like I'm ready to get up!

I could feel myself not functioning as well, but there wasn't anything I could do about it.  I didn't have the ability to focus my attention.  I couldn't write my blog; I didn't have anything to say. 

I never felt like it was an irreversible backslide.  Of course, I never do.  It always feels like my wheels will engage again soon - in a few hours or the next day.  This time I assumed that I would get back into the swing of things once the weather returned to normal.  It was a pretty good assumption, this time.  The fact that I am sitting here writing is a good indicator that I am headed in the right direction.  The rest of the day will tell the tale. 

I've added extreme and prolonged adverse weather to my list of triggers which might cause an increase in symptoms.  The next time the weather turns foul, I can prepare for it.  If we have another blast of arctic air, I'll plan to work on a fun project. 

Remember the two benefits of failure. First, if you do fail, you learn what doesn't work; and second, the failure gives you the opportunity to try a new approach.  ~~Roger Von Oech