Are We Allowed to be Sick?

It’s a funny thing when we don’t feel well. Earlier this week, my body was achy, and my throat was sore. I was afraid I was coming down with the flu. I had been exposed to it the week prior, so I was afraid it was my turn.

Can I admit to you the mental Olympics that I tortured myself with? It went something like this.

• Maybe I should just push through?

• I am eating too much sugar- this is all my fault.

• I should have not said yes to all this stuff.

• I have too much on my plate.

• If I just get some more sleep tonight, I’ll be better.

• I can’t take off of work, I am needed.

• It’s too much!

Not to be too dramatic, but I literally exhausted myself trying to push away my feelings of sickness, all the while torturing myself thinking it was my fault.

The crazy part of all of this is if one of you would have told me you felt this way, achy, tired, sore throat, I would have been like "Oh, please take care of yourself! Do you need anything? Sounds like you need rest!" But why would I talk that way to myself?!

Why are we our own worst critic? And why won’t we allow ourselves just too, I don’t know, be human? And why can we encourage and validate others but not ourselves?

Are we holding ourselves to a higher standard than God does? 
I think so.

Does God ask for perfect, on point, 100% of the time? 
Not a chance!

On the contrary, He begs us to come to Him and He will give us rest. In the book of Matthew, Jesus clearly states the below. I love The Message translation. 

Matthew 11:28-30 The Message (MSG)
“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.

Sounds pretty good right? Is that the voice of gentleness and rest inside your head? Yeah, not mine either. But I am working on it this year!

The apostle Paul says in 2 Corinthians 12: 9 that God's power works best in weakness. Paul is talking here about an affliction he suffered with. Some believe it to be an addiction or handicap, nevertheless he begged God to take it away, but this was God's response.

Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. 2 Cor 12:9 NLT

Weakness, people. It’s like the complete opposite of what the world is screaming at us. Tough and push though are deeply rewarded. Weakness is definitely not the goal. 

Can we all just give ourselves permission to not be 100%, on point, all the time? Maybe we should listen to our bodies when they are hurting or fatigued. Maybe we need to make time to rest and ask for help. Maybe we need to understand that its Gods hands the world sits in, not ours.

Oh, I don't know about you, but I can be so hardheaded! In my life, I have had to learn this lesson over and over. So this time in pure exhaustion, I laid myself down, watched some TV and dozed on and off for a couple days. I asked for help when needed. I said no to work and took the days off. Oh, how my body needed it!

So, I am challenging you, as a friend but also as a nurse, this winter season when sickness does tend to be more rampant.  

How are you taking care of your body?

Are you proactively planning some rest time?

Are you going to take the measures necessary to heal your body when you are sick?

I think you should. Your mind, body, soul and loved ones would be better for it.

Love, B

If you want to talk more health and wellness, please let me know! I would love to share more.