{"id":1240,"date":"2014-06-29T23:40:04","date_gmt":"2014-06-29T23:40:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/?p=1240"},"modified":"2014-06-22T00:06:20","modified_gmt":"2014-06-22T00:06:20","slug":"chronic-illness-and-pain-pet-friendly","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/2014\/06\/chronic-illness-and-pain-pet-friendly.html","title":{"rendered":"Chronic Illness and Pain: Pet Friendly"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"FIsh<\/a>This weekend marks the 18th anniversary of…drum roll please…My fish tank!<\/p>\n

Although I really enjoy them, I’m allergic to dogs and cats (and horses and, well, just about anything else that moves about…), so fish are the obvious choice for a pet. And, although they do require work, and cleaning the tank is not exactly my most enjoyed activity, they do bring a sense of calm, especially on the really bad days.<\/p>\n

Many of us lupies and others with illness and pain have pets, and feel the same about theirs as I do about mine. They help us look a the world a little differently and, often, in a humorous way. They bring some nature indoors when we cannot go out. They help us feel an attachment to God’s creation, and even help us get up in the morning when it can be oh, so painful to do so. I smile each time I see the fish, all lined up at the front of the tank, waving their fins and waiting eagerly for breakfast.<\/p>\n

Of course, sometimes people take pets a bit too far. Diamond-studded collars and other extravagances just make me shake my head and pray. \u00a0And those who let their pets run amok, creating noise and mess in public, for example, truly need to rethink their priorities. \u00a0If care of pets takes precedence over care of a person, well, that’s a problem, too. But pets do have a place in our lives, an important place, even if they do take extra work and time. Yes, God created them, too!<\/p>\n

Fish come and fish go. Those in my tank right now are, of course, not the ones from 18 years ago. But all along the way, I’ve had hours of stress relief and delight at my finny fauna. And, I pray, there are many more to come!<\/p>\n

Scritch your furry friend on the head for me! And enjoy!<\/p>\n

Blessings for the day,<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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She expected to be writing scripts. God had other plans. A few years after her graduation, Maureen was diagnosed with a life-threatening case of organ-involved lupus. Her life turned upside down as she grappled with the effects of the illness and other health conditions that ensued. She was no stranger to serious health challenges; even as a child, Maureen had survived numerous bouts of pneumonia, flu, and other infections. But lupus made her take a fresh look at her life goals - and took herlifelong, strong Catholic Christian faith and writing in a direction she'd never imagined. Today, Maureen writes and speaks about walking with the Lord while living with chronic pain and illness. Her most recent book is \"Don't Panic!: How to Keep Going When the Going Gets Tough (Franciscan Media). She is also the author of, \"Peace in the Storm: Meditations on Chronic Pain & Illness\" (Image Books\/Randomhouse), \"Beyond Pain: Job, Jesus, and Joy\" (Twenty-Third Publications), \"The First Year: Hypothyroidism, Second Edition\" (Perseus) and \"Taking Charge of Lupus: How to Manage the Disease and Make the Most of Your LIfe.\" She writes the syndicated column, \"Living Well,\" for Catholic News Service, and has also written for Saint Anthony Messenger Magazine, Journey for Women Magazine, The Upper Room Magazine, LupusNow, and Arthritis Today. Maureen's health continues to be a challenge, however she feels honored to be able to bring her perspective, from experience and knowledge, to others. \"Good Days...Bad Days with Maureen Pratt\" is a new way for Maureen to reach people who carry the burden of illness and pain in their lives, or who care for someone who does. Through the blog, she hopes to bring issues of health, wellness, and spirit into focus and, especially, inspire others that, no matter what health challenges, illness, or hardships they endure, each person can find a good way to realize the wonderful potential God has placed within each heart and soul.","sameAs":["http:\/\/www.maureenpratt.com"],"url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/author\/mpratt"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1240","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/548"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1240"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1240\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1242,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1240\/revisions\/1242"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1240"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1240"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1240"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}