Fighting Parkinson’s, and forward is forward

This week, I received a lovely reminder from a close friend that “your speed doesn’t matter, forward is forward.” As you know, in this Parkinson’s recovery, I learned and have reminded all of you, that this is a race won by the tortoise, not the hare. With that in mind, let’s move forward.

Here is what I was sent:

There are things we can learn from the tortoise every day. Please remember, when you proceed like the tortoise, slow and steady, you tend to see many beautiful things in life that you used to just walk passed without noticing. And the joy you feel in living opens your heart and your dopamine as you are working on your recovery. When you are moving like the tortoise, slowly and steadily, you also have more time to notice all of the subtle unpleasant changes that are happening to your body. How do you put fear to the side and deal with those changes? Keep moving forward!

To keep moving forward when the unpleasantries of Parkinson’s are visiting you, faith that you are recovering is critical. And action…doing the Parkinson’s Recipe for Recovery®, and doing other mental and spiritual positive things toward our recovery. That is how you put fear aside and deal with those unpleasant changes.

One of the greatest difficulties in this recovery is not being concerned about the subtle, and not so subtle, changes that occur day-to-day. Since the Parkinson’s body has limited energy, you have to trust it to know where you need the healing the most. Some days that means you walk a little slower, some days it means you tremor more, some days it means you have a headache.

Here’s a look at how to accept these matters:
“Okay. Apparently, I am supposed to be walking slower, because if I wasn’t supposed to be walking slower, I would not be walking slower. My speed doesn’t matter, forward is forward.”
“Okay. Apparently, I am supposed to be tremoring more, because if I wasn’t supposed to be tremoring more, I would not be tremoring more. My speed doesn’t matter, forward is forward.”
“Okay. Apparently, I am supposed to have a headache, because if I wasn’t supposed to have a headache, I would not have one. My speed doesn’t matter, forward is forward.”

The power of “Okay. Apparently…” is representative of true acceptance of what the Universe is offering, and it defeats anger and frustration and resentment and fear. Instead of looking at something and getting upset, just say, “Okay. Apparently, that was supposed to happen” or “Okay. Apparently, I wasn’t supposed to be doing that….” I think you get the picture. The more unpleasant things that occur that you can look at and say, “Okay. Apparently…” the more calm you will be and less angry and fearful you will be as you continue your recovery.

And, the one thing you need to keep constant in your recovery is the Recipe.

That way your body can say, “Okay, I know you are doing these things, and I know you are generating this energy, thank you, now I can start fixing this mess.” Failure to accept what is occurring with your recovery causes problems down the road. When people change what they are doing to meet up with the day-to-day healing nuances when they really do not understand what is occurring on the inside, then they undo the benefits the body has achieved thus far. Faith, plus action, is critical to this philosophy.

And with the Recipe, faith plus action looks like this:

I have faith in my recovery. Plus, I am taking action to heal my organs by doing the Medical Qigong exercises. I am recovery!
I have faith in my recovery. Plus, I am taking action to generate more brain activity and energy by doing the Brain Vibration Chanting. I am recovery!
I have faith in my recovery. Plus, I am taking action to make my body healthier by eating better. I am recovery!
I have faith in my recovery. Plus, I am taking action to balance my internal energy by doing Jin Shin Jyutsu. I am recovery!
I have faith in my recovery. Plus, I am taking action to calm my mind by meditating. I am recovery!
I have faith in my recovery. Plus, I am taking action to connect my Inner Divine to my Higher Power by praying, opening my heart, feeling love and joy and laughter and gratitude, and by keeping the faith that I am safe and secure. I am recovery!

The hare views “recovery” as winning the race, only…symptom-free recovery. He fails to understand that, in and of itself, recovery is participating in the race. So, when the hare speeds off of the path toward what he sees as recovery, the destination only, he stops moving forward, he never finds his way back to the path, and he never wins the race.

The tortoise is recovery. The tortoise fully understands that “your speed doesn’t matter, forward is forward.” The tortoise views recovery as each small advance toward the symptom-free recovery at the finish line. However, the tortoise, by its very nature, has to move slowly and steadily, and the tortoise cannot worry too much about the bumps in the road. Instead the tortoise knows that every step toward the finish line is recovery, in and of itself, and the tortoise sees love and joy and laughter and gratitude and fulfillment on the entire journey.

Oh, yes, and then the tortoise wins the race. There is so much we can learn from the tortoise.

How about taking a lesson from the tortoise and fully embracing that “your speed doesn’t matter, forward is forward.” Then, grab onto the Recipe, and add in some faith and action and acceptance! How about being the tortoise and being your recovery in everything you do!

You are worth it!!!

All my best,

Howard