Today was going to be a day that was better than the previous. That turned out to not be the case. Although better than the first weekend, I felt like I had the flu all day; achy, stomach not right, headache, etc. Oh well, I know it could be MUCH worse. I laid low and struggled through my crochet project that I can’t wait to finish and never do again 🙂
I got several calls today. Yesterday I spoke about those friends who run in the other direction (or are absent) when you need help. Today I ran into those who know better than you what you’re going through even though this is the first time they have encountered such an illness. Mind you, I have no problem with people offering advice in a well meaning way. What upsets me is when people pontificate on things that they have researched and decided is the right thing FOR YOU TO DO. Sometimes those soap boxes get very high.
When someone starts those rants, I just turn off and tune out. I guess, even well-intentioned, they don’t realize that even if their counsel was the best in the world, the intended will likely reject it because of the forceful manner in which it is presented. It’s at times like that that I just want to tell people to leave me alone and if what I’m doing kills me, so be it.
I guess I don’t want people to tell me what to do. LISTEN, offer advice if you have it, but just be there to hear me. I might complain, I might moan, I might be depressed, or I might surprise you and just be me. . . but thank you for just listening.
–joann