Some bit of wisdom began to emerge in me. I cannot say I was fully conscious of it, but at some level, I knew that a big change was needed for me to get better. There are lots of ways for a person to make a big change. In my life, in my family, big change had always come about from moving.
Relocation forces people to find new ways of living. It was clear to me that the ways I found living in the North had not been good for me and I was tired of fighting the long cold winters. All our children were out of the house. We were mortgage free and pretty much debt free. Though I had quite a few years to go, my husband was about to retire.
Up to that point, both of our lives had been focused on making a living, paying our bills, and raising children. Only once had we taken a vacation alone and that was early in our marriage. Instead, our energy went into giving the children all of the experiences and opportunities that we could afford, even using money that could have gone to retirement to do it.
We were not wealthy, but we had enough, we believed. Perhaps it was time for us to do something for ourselves. My husband and I applied for and were accepted into the Peace Corps.
This pending change gave me the motivation I needed – finally – to shed a few pounds. In fact, we both lost weight.
The excitement and anticipation of the adventure gave me back energy and enthusiasm. The effort required to prepare gave me plenty of opportunity to get active again. Before long, I was feeling better, sleeping better, and having fewer aches and pains.
The lifestyle change helped improve my arthritis even though I didn’t know I even had it.
Have you ever had a sense that something needed to change in your life? Were you able to make the change? Tell us about your experience. Did change help your OA? Was it too difficult?
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