Graves Disease Emancipation

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Hello Lovelies:

I realized something recently. I’ve been living in a cocoon for 4 years. And it was incredibly necessary. When I got sick I retreated inwards. I needed to back away from the world to rest and nurture myself back to health. It was important that I get to know my body and my disease. I needed to learn how to be unapologetically selfish and make myself a priority… to fall in love with myself and create a foundation of self-kindness. I cannot stress how fundamental this has been to my healing with Graves Disease. But my cocoon has become my comfort zone and it’s time to let go.

Graves Disease Emancipation - Life with an autoimmune disease and why it's important to live outside of your chronic illness

What it means to leave the Graves Disease Cocoon

I’m not suggesting that rest, self-love and self-kindness should no longer be a priority. Those will always be the foundation of my lifestyle and I know that letting them go to the wayside would do nothing but harm my health.

But the downside to living with anything chronic and/or incurable is that you can become entrapped by it. And while cocooning myself and getting to know my disease and my body incredibly well were the key to making it this far, I know that I can’t let Graves be the pilot of my life.

Yes, this is permanent and yes I do need to consciously make the best efforts possible to care for myself if I wish to continue to thrive with an illness. But that doesn’t mean that I want Graves Disease to constantly be front and centre. And for the most part it has been. I’ve allowed fear of relapses and flare ups to guide me in many instances.

But things are changing and I couldn’t be in a happier place. This is the first summer since my diagnoses that I’ve barely had Graves Disease on the mind. The worry of a relapse hasn’t lived in my belly. It’s been liberating! And it’s also been so good for my health.

Which brings me back to my cocoon – I got to know Graves Disease so well in there. Sharing a body with something is about as intimate as it gets. When I became brave enough to sit with it and truly take it in I was able to start healing. It worked and I relentlessly clung to that.

But sitting with it permanently is not only impossible – it’s exhausting. There is a Sara that exists outside of Graves Disease and she needs to be indulged too. A chronic illness may change the way you have to care for yourself, it may require that you create a ton of extra space for rest and downtime and be a lot more in tune with your body… but it shouldn’t mean that you are constantly sitting with your illness.

So this summer I have emancipated myself from Graves Disease. I’ve left my cocoon and I’ve lived outside of my comfort zone and away from my diagnoses. I’ve still cared for myself and my health tremendously – I’ve just let joy, not Graves Disease, guide me.

Graves Disease Emancipation - Life with an autoimmune disease and why it's important to live outside of your chronic illness

I’m absolutely certain that I will retreat back into my cocoon again someday –either out of habit or necessity. And there will be times when Graves Disease and I will have to sit together and get comfortable. But I’m not making that my forever. This is part of who I am, not my identity.

Whatever your cocoon may be, I hope that you allow yourself the opportunity to escape from time to time. You deserve to exist outside of it – to just breathe and be, plainly and simply.

Health and love,

Sara

Thought of the day: While my cocoon is safe space for healing, I am not truly living if I only exist within it. I am brave enough to wander outside. 

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Graves Disease Emancipation - Life with an autoimmune disease and why it's important to live outside of your chronic illness

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Sara | Ms. Health-Esteem

Sara Flanagan is a wellness writer and the creator of www.mshealthesteem.com, where she shares her story of being diagnosed with Graves Disease, a chronic autoimmune disease, and empowering herself to do everything she can to thrive in spite of her diagnosis. She writes articles on self-love, acceptance, wellness and nutrition. Join the Health-Esteem Family today and share in the journey.

7 Comments

  1. Reply

    Jane Gammage

    August 14, 2016

    Hi Sara, congratulations!!! I am absolutely delighted that you have reached a place where Graves is no longer your master. I look forward to the day I am there too. I poked myself out of my cocoon this weekend and it was scary but I had a great time: I now need to retreat to recuperate though as I am still in that place of fear to some degree. Bless you for sharing your experiences so eloquently. Much love and strength sweet pea xxx

    • Reply

      Sara

      August 14, 2016

      Thank you so much sweetheart! I’m so grateful to have such an awesome, inspiring Graves Warrior on my side!

      I didn’t even realize it had happened initially. I just got some awesome results back from my last batch of blood work and it hit me that I have been living outside of that cocoon for a while now! That realization makes me pretty happy. But it’s still there for me to crawl into when I need to. I think we will all need our cocoons from time to time!

      I’m glad you enjoyed a day outside of it! I hope there’s another one in your near future ♡. Until then, rest and take care of the beautiful you – you deserve it. ??

  2. Reply

    Jo's food bites

    August 14, 2016

    What a beautifully written post 🙂 Having just been diagnosed with an unwelcome malignant tumour I am determined that now it has been removed I will not allow my cocoon to completely envelope me. Life is for living …only we can set or break our boundaries 🙂

    • Reply

      Sara

      August 14, 2016

      Thank you so much for your kind words ♡. I wish you well as you journey outside of your cocoon too! May you have good health and love ahead of you.

      • Reply

        Jo's food bites

        August 14, 2016

        Thank you x

  3. Reply

    koolkosherkitchen

    August 14, 2016

    Thank you for visiting my blog and for the like! I admire your struggle with the illness. You have managed to break out of your cocoon as a lovely butterfly! I have never tried to do the tree pose on a railroad track – great idea! I wish you the best of health now and in the future.

    • Reply

      Sara

      August 14, 2016

      You’re more than welcome! You have fantastic content. I’m glad to connect!

      And thank you so much for the love! It’s not always easy but I am glad for the person this journey has allowed me to become. And to roam free of my cocoon is marvelous!

      I hope you try a tree pose next time you find a railroad track! It was fun! If you snap a picture I’d love to see ?.

      Health and love ♡.

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