{"id":832,"date":"2013-09-14T19:16:27","date_gmt":"2013-09-14T19:16:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/gooddaysbaddays\/?p=832"},"modified":"2013-09-14T18:33:43","modified_gmt":"2013-09-14T18:33:43","slug":"what-season-are-you-in","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/2013\/09\/what-season-are-you-in.html","title":{"rendered":"What Season Are You In?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"pic<\/a>After nearly 15 years with lupus, I’ve come to realize that the journey with the disease moves along much like the seasons of the year. Spring, full of energy and promise and new things, is much like the early days of getting the diagnosis. After a long time, you finally know what is wrong (and are validated that, yes, there\u00a0is<\/em> something wrong, even though many people told you it was “all in your head”). Spiritually, you’re full of praise and thanks – God’s finally answered your prayer and you know what’s wrong!<\/p>\n

Next comes summer, when the heat is turned up and the days are longer, muggier, and you really begin to feel what life with lupus is about and how drastically it will change your “regular” self and routine. You pray for guidance. Perhaps you pray for better doctors. You pray that the labyrinth of \u00a0insurance and other paperwork will get sorted out. You pray your loved ones will understand and stand by you.<\/p>\n

With the realization that lupus is chronic, from “summer,” you move into autumn. The days are chillier and you feel it in your joints and bones. The sunlight, which you enjoyed before your diagnosis, is much less present, and you feel less cheery. But, you cannot sit idle. After allowing yourself to rest during the “spring” and “summer” phase, you begin to seek more medical opinions, advice from other lupies, information from books and the Web. You are restless and not so very happy that this chronic illness is, well, chronic. You might pray more that God will heal you, take away the disease, or at least lift much of its burden from your shoulders.<\/p>\n

“Winter” is, for me, much like being in the depths of a flare. The pain is worse, the disease activity is ramped up, and the meds are, perhaps, increased. But relief seems a long ways away. If it will ever come. God, at a time like this, might seem far away. It might become more difficult for you to emotionally desire to give thanks or praise Him. You might be too tired to pray at all.<\/p>\n

But, then, the flare subsides. Your emotions thaw. You begin to have a little more energy. You can see the early-spring green emerging from the hard-packed, cold ground.<\/p>\n

The beauty of thinking in terms of seasons is that we can understand a bit more about the swings we go through as we live years with a chronic illness. Although it might seem difficult to believe at times, there is a cycle to it, and there are ups and downs. And, especially, the more we understand that the lows we feel will not be forever, the more we can rest in the faith that God stays with us throughout and is always ready to comfort us, even in the coldest winter.<\/p>\n

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

Maureen<\/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\/832","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=832"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/832\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":833,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/832\/revisions\/833"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=832"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=832"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/gooddaysbaddays\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=832"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}