Welcome to April and our monthly Chronic Voice blog link-up. I am balancing my chronic eye disease and the associated pain with my need to move forward in life.

Here is my response to the monthly writing prompts.

Keeping it Real in My Life

SPRINGING: As we move into Spring, I feel like a weight is lifting after the long, cold winter. My garden is coming alive with new shoots and pretty flowers, the trees are growing leaves again, and somehow life doesn’t feel quite so dreary anymore. Despite a recent flare-up with my eye condition that left my face swollen and my vision blurred, I am cheerful about what we have to look forward to.

GROUNDING: While it is easy to forget my problems and my chronic pain on a good day, I am always aware that life goes on, good and bad. A good portion of my reiki lifestyle practice involves grounding work to ensure I stay connected to and aware of the world around me. Life can’t be all sunshine and flowers. Sometimes we work in the shadows too.

LUXURIATING: I decided to treat myself to some new bath and skincare products and so I am luxuriating in the scents and sensations of different bath oils, shower gels and moisturizing creams. When I take a little time with my shower routine and focus on my body, I do feel better. Sometimes all I need is a little time for selfcare and a nice home spa on a chronic pain day.

DAUNTING: We have endured a tough year during the pandemic, and it is not over yet. While we are moving out of lockdown and beginning to socialize, we now face the daunting task of being out in crowds of people again. It seems unthinkable after what has passed, and I have decided to take small steps back into socialising again. I never felt comfortable in large crowds anyway, so this “new normal” might be easier for me to cope with when we have to limit social interaction.  

SUSTAINING: I am currently separated from my husband and stuck in some kind of limbo with our relationship. He refuses to accept our situation and I am trying not to make it any worse for our children, meaning I have to spend time in his company. We do get on as friends, but I struggle with my feelings about all that has passed. I am trying to sustain as healthy a relationship as possible, but I don’t know how much longer I can continue when he refuses to repair the damage he has caused.

Chronic Voice Link-Up

I joined the social network for A Chronic Voice because I needed to find people who understand what life is like with chronic illness, people like me. Today I have written a post using the April link-up prompts, to show my experience of living with a chronic pain disorder. Click here to find other blog posts from fellow chronic pain sufferers, or #spoonies as we call ourselves online.

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