Category: Mindset
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Generosity rather than gratitude
Today is International Day of Charity. As such, today’s post is a reminder to think about others rather than yourself. A while ago I wrote a post about how I replaced the desire for “less pain” with the hope of “more joy”. The shift sounds small, but it was in…
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“That’s ableism!” … or is it?
This post is potentially a little bit controversial, but… I think it warrants my time and yours to put it out there and get people thinking… and talking. Months ago, I read a blog post written by someone with a disability. They wrote that despite the day-to-day difficulties they were…
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Guest Post: Miffed at Midlife
As you know, as well as blogging away, I also love reading other people’s blogs. That’s how I came across Jenny and her great blog “Miffed at Midlife”. In one of those nice moments of serendipity where you recognize a lot of similarities in how you think and approach life,…
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Advice from Julius Caesar
Last night I had a dream in which two teenage siblings used some high-tech-phone-tapping combined with some good old-fashioned ear-to-door snooping to uncover two secrets; their parents were spies for the government, and a gang of meanies was about to kidnap the spy-parents. The crooks soon burst into the house…
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Serious side-eye needed!
Potentially off topic, I know, but I was reading a ten-year-old magazine the other day (I’d like to pretend it was in a doctor’s office, but it was actually (inexplicably) on my bookshelf). Halfway through the magazine I came across the image of a lovely farmhouse in an idyllic, arcadian,…
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The path of chronic pain
One metaphor that I use a lot to describe healing is the notion of a ‘journey’. As such, I was curious to discover a poster infographic for the ‘path’ into (and out of) chronic pain. The ‘map’ designed by a wellness app called “Curable”, starts at childhood, and covers how…
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Bitter isn’t better
A while ago I saw a note on social media that went something like “I hope that every time I am misdiagnosed or medically gaslit, doctors all across the world stub a toe and suffer intense pain”. I confess similar thoughts have crossed my mind from time to time; there’s…
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Keep smiling as you go under
A gazillion years ago, I remember reading a quote from the Dalai Lama that said something like “smile with your face and your heart will follow”. It seemed a small thing, but during my healing journey I have come to realize that it has powerful implications. Your pain-brain is always…
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Migraine-brains are like Nuclear Reactors…
The other day there was an earthquake in Japan. It made me sad. It also made me worried. For the people, for their buildings and infrastructure… for their nuclear reactors. In my typical “domino thinking” manner, that thought led to another: ‘normal’ brains are like coal-based power-plants, whilst migraine-brains are…
The Mindful Migraine 