{"id":370,"date":"2013-01-08T12:28:01","date_gmt":"2013-01-08T12:28:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/gooddaysbaddays\/?p=370"},"modified":"2013-01-07T18:31:51","modified_gmt":"2013-01-07T18:31:51","slug":"on-pain-and-purposeful-laughter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/2013\/01\/on-pain-and-purposeful-laughter.html","title":{"rendered":"On Pain and Purposeful Laughter"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>\u00a0Don’t like pain? Don’t like needles? I’m right there with you. But today, I’ll be up close and personal with both.<\/p>\n

One of the illness I suffer from is iron deficient anemia, and periodically I have to get iron infusions. I know that, at least temporarily, the addition nof iron to my system will be a good thing. And, I also know that many of the the other people sitting in the infusion center are fighting for their lives and not just energy, receiving chemotherapy treatments. But the process has, in the past, brought bruises, horrible leg pain, migraines, and other discomforts, and it’s also a relatively long time – three hours or more – altogether not a pleasant way to spend a day.<\/p>\n

Still, it’s really useless to go into the infusions thinking worst-case, so I try to bring a veritable Mary Poppins bag of distractions, especially items that provide fodder for purposeful laughter, distraaction,\u00a0and comfort.<\/p>\n

Into the bag will go the latest newspaper’s comics (and crossword and other puzzles), a larger treasury of my favorite comic, Mutts by Patrick McDonnell, yummy snacks, a little pink sock (those who read Mutts will understand this), a blank pad of paper, and, externally, a smile and willingness to find humor in things large and small (even to the point of nicknaming the nurse wielding the needle as a ‘vampire’). \ud83d\ude42 It’s all designed to keep me thinking light, humor, and the positive side of an otherwise decidedly difficult time.<\/p>\n

Sometimes, we might not feel like laughing in the midst of health challenges. But if we take along visible cues related to laughter, we can find a brighter purpose in our ordeals.<\/p>\n

I might leave at home my Yoga Dogs and Guinea Pic Games calendars, but I’ll still have plent to smile about!<\/p>\n

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

Maureen<\/p>\n

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 <\/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. 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