Balance

About a month and a half ago I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's Thyroiditis.  This is the most common thryoid disease.  In lay man terms it means my thryoid is underactive.  The thyroid is a gland at the base of your neck and it releases your thyroid hormone.  This hormone helps control your body's functions.  Hashimotos's Thyroiditis is an autoimmune disease.  In my case (and in the case of most people with hypothyroidism) my own body has attacked my thryoid, enlarging it and making it unable to function properly. The thing that strikes me the most about thyroid disease is the list of symptons it causes. 

This small gland in our neck can wreak havoc on the human body.  It can cause one to have less energy, fatigue, memory loss, deppression, dry skin, low heart rate, high blood pressure, weight gain, irritability, hair loss, constipation and more.  The symptons vary depending on the person and the severity of the case.  This one hormone being off balance can cause unbalance in other parts of a person's life.  It affects both emotions and the physical body.  Similar to the thyroid hormone when little things are off in our lives they can have repurcussions.  

For example an unresolved argument can cause stress, and bitterness. Which, affects our physical body, as well as ones spiritual and emotional state.  Stress can cause physical symptons like stomach aches, headaches and sleeping problems.  Stress and bitterness also can cause a rift between yourself and God and effect your happiness.  In Mark 11:25 Jesus tells us  "And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.”  In Matthew 18, Christ stresses the importance of forgiveness by saying we need to forgive someone 77 times or seventy time seven - depending on the version.  The point remains the same in that we shouldn't keep track of grievances, but to be willing to forgive.  I think this is because when we forgive and don't hold on to things it allows us to grow in both our spiritutal and emotional lives.  Things like anger, too much work not enough play, too much play not enough work, stress, anxiety, not spending enough time to hear God or for that matter to even hear yourself think, can all knock off the balance in our lives.  

  

For my body to have the right about of thyroid hormone I now take a pill every morning.  I will take this pill the rest of my life.  I don't mind because it helps my body function the way it is suppose to.  The doctor increased my dosage this week, but I can feel the difference already from the dosage I was taking for just a few weeks.  Even though I was just diagnosed I have been tired for the last three to four years and there is a good chance that it was due to my thyroid slowly not working right.  Unfortunately, we can not just take a pill to cure us of not wanting to forgive, from stress, bitterness, or to keep us from being workaholics (though they do have medication for deppression and anxiety).  However, we can work on ourselves daily and continue to strive for balance in our lives.  Just like my pill working on one's spiritual, emotional and physical health takes a lifetime habits.  Prayer, a relationship with God, practing spiritual habits, excercise, eating right, and other habits can help us on the journey of life =).

(1st picture is from yahoo image search on balance scale, the second picture is from a search on stress, and the last picture is one of my own) 

Photo Frames, End Tables and a Good Dose of Gratefulness

I am not a patient person.  The truth is I like things done quickly and efficiently.  I hate waiting in lines, walking behind people who are too slow, people who ask to many unnecessary questions, and having to re-explain myself among other things.  I think (at least I hope!) as I get older and grow I am getting better at waiting after all I have managed to wait an hour at the DMV and still have the ability to be friendly to the clerk.  Though there are other times when my lack of patience gets one up on me.   I may be know to have cut in line or to have been less than kind to some customer service representative.

 So, it wasn't a big surprise to me when the other day I caught myself thinking how I would like to have my apartment completely furnished and decorated now!  I don't think it is wrong in itself to want our apartment to be fully decorated and furnished, but I think the urgency needed to be worked through.  After all what is wrong with waiting until we can afford to buy a coffee table or a picture for the wall?  There is no harm in piecing Derek's and my home together over time and as we can afford it.  Is instant gratification worth not being able to pay rent or looming credit card debt?  The furnishings in our home should never define who I am or how I feel! 

  When I focus on what I do not have I forget about all that I do have. Such as an awesome husband, a family that loves me, an apartment that I like, a dining table, a coffee maker, and a a kitchen aid mixer.  Here is the real kicker I have seen real poverty!  I have been in homes with no floors, no water, no electricity and hammocks as beds.  I have seen, talked and hugged children with no shoes and with not enough to eat.  I have written about it and shared my stories and feelings. Shame on me for being impatient for not having a coffee table, when I have carpet and a bed.  A warm and safe place to lay my head. 

We live in an instant gratification society and a "me" focused world.  I don't think nice things are wrong, however the focus on things that you do not have can screw your perspective.  I think it is important to be grateful for what you have, help those in need and to remember the importance of waiting for something.  When you have to work for something you value it and take care of it.  It serves as a reminder to us to be grateful for the things that we have been blessed with. 

Today, don't be in such a hurry.  Take a moment to enjoy life.  Take a moment to be grateful for what you have and don't be afraid to wait for something.  Please don't let our "instant gratification", "me" based society get the best of you!  Instead be patient, be still, and count your blessings.