Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards | Hi, feeling better about my Uncle Dick and life in general!

Thanks so much to everyone for your support and comfort this past week. It was really an emotional rollercoaster for me, but I'm finally starting to feel a little better yesterday and today. The news of my Uncle Dick's death and the horrible details around it triggered a flare of my fibromyalgia fatigue and pain. I was basically bedridden all day Saturday and Sunday. But life goes on. Dick will be mourned and remembered. And I have learned a valuable lesson about my limits, about how much bad news affects me physically, about how much I'm comfortable knowing about family secrets, about how powerless I am to truly know what another person is going through, much less help them. I've been trying too hard to be the "family hero," the one who keeps the family together by sheer force of will, the one who makes the phone calls with bad news, the one who keeps in touch with everyone and passes along family news, the one who attends all the weddings and funerals and graduations, the one who's always there for everyone.

No one appointed me to that position, no one asked me to do it, no one said they'd be upset if I didn't. So I resign. It was foolish of me to keep trying, given my health. So from now on, I'm going to remember that I'm disabled, that I'm a fabulous invalid, that I'm the one who needs taking care of. And if the rest of the family even notices the change I'll be very surprised.

This has been a very humbling experience. And that's good because it reminds me that I'm human, just like everyone else. Not better than, not less than, just the same. Good and bad, strengths and weaknesses, mistakes and successes. And you know what, just being human sounds real good to me right now.

Bless you all and thanks again for your kind help.

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Laura
Keep it simple!

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