My Number One Tip for Living Well with GP
In the May newsletter, I gave you nine of my top ten tips for living (well!) with GP. Here’s number one:
Get Off the Ship
You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing which you think you cannot do. – Elanor Roosevelt
Every morning I sit down with my cup of coffee and a fantastic book by Patti Digh called Life is a Verb: 37 Days to Wake Up, Be Mindful and Live Intentionally. As I read through the lesson of the day and complete the corresponding journal exercise, I often think about how it applies to living (well!) with GP. Recently I came across one that struck me as particularly relevant.
The lesson begins with the Elanor Roosevelt quote above and continues with a story from Digh’s stint as a counselor on a Semester at Sea cruise. As the ship made it’s way around the world, Digh noticed that one student never disembarked at the ports of call. One day Digh asked the young woman why she chose to stay on the ship when once-in-a-lifetime opportunities awaited her on land. The student’s response? She was afraid that if she got off the ship, she might get lost.
Those with gastroparesis are often consumed with fear. Fear of eating, fear of flare ups, fear of never getting better, fear of socializing, fear of traveling, fear of not being taken seriously…the list goes on. Ironically, it’s often the fear — not the condition — that limits us. Just as the fear of getting lost kept that student holed up in the “safety” of her floating classroom, fear keeps many GPers trapped within the confines of malnutrition, exhaustion, illness and/or loneliness.
Digh’s challenge to her reader, and my challenge to you, is to get off the ship. Acknowledge the ways in which your GP-related fears are holding you back from better managing your symptoms, improving your overall health, or leading a more fulfilling life…and then do something about it. Are you afraid to vary your diet because you might get sick? Try one new GP-friendly food this week. Afraid to exercise because you might feel worse? Take a walk around the block after dinner and see what happens. Afraid to try a new treatment because it might not work? Consider the implications of not trying. Afraid to put your needs first because others might think you’re lazy or selfish? Make self-care your top priority for one day and see how you feel.
I’m certainly not encouraging you to be reckless. “Getting off the ship” isn’t about eating or doing things that you know aren’t good for you. It’s about stepping outside of your comfort zone in order to acknowledge and address the fears that are keeping you from a happier, healthier life. While you must always respect your limitations and make smart choices, you might be surprised just how much your world opens up once you step off the “gastroparesis ship.”
Related Posts:
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
6 Responses to “My Number One Tip for Living Well with GP”
Leave a Reply
Hi Crystal, thank you for this article. You are so very right. I have recently tried accupuncture as a form of treatment for my GP and have found some relief!
I do understand completely about the fears being afraid to eat because of the fear of how my body will react. Sometimes, I will just not eat at all and rely completely on the canned nutrition through my tube feeds (which is notenough calories for a day-on about550). But other days I just throw caution to the wind and pay the price for it for days and nights! It is a vicious circle. Trying to stay on track is so difficult and very isolating.
Thank you though Crystal for your continued articles and words of encouragement! How is the book coming? Cannotwait to get my copy!
Crystal you are right I have been able to eat more varieties of foods when I started stepping out and being brave. I still am learning to read my own body and sometimes I get it wrong but it is worth trying again. I am up to 110lb and trying for 5 more if I reach that I will try for 5 more and then I will be at my normal weight. Thank you so much for all your help and insights. Mechieal
I am a newly diagnoised GPer (within the past 6 months) #9 – Is my draw back. I know I have to make my own health top priority – but with a job working 8-10 hour days as a Postmaster – I find it hard to manage my health and find time for the correct amount of food and liquids. I keep a food journal now; and try to add different foods to see what I can tolerate. Days when I have nauseated flareups I go back to what I know works for me for a few days. I am working on getting a better support staff of doctors and have made an appointment with a massage therapist who specialies in cupping massage. Something new for me and like others say – what can it hurt – the relaxation difenitely will be good for me. Looking forward to it. Thanks again Crystal
very good read,though one almost ironic thing I go through is that staying on track is harder than ‘going off ship’ i.e it’s easier for me to give in and eat normal foods (with friends/family who tempt me constantly to ‘live a little’) than to keep to my diet that helps me. Because I don’t have any kind of real physical symptoms,like vomiting or so forth,and I just deal with the pain/bloating/etc on the inside.I don’t talk about it …the people surrounding me don’t think twice of it and continue to tempt me or tease me,because they don’t ‘see pain’ or I don’t ‘ look sick ‘ .
anyways,getting off topic there but really it’s the kind of treatment I get sometimes that leads to a sadness,or fear,and seeking an isolation,because they do not see they cause me more pain,mentally,with the taunting.
Hi, Hannah. Great comment. I think it’s common for GPers to stay “off track” because, as you said, it’s actually easier sometimes. Let me just clarify a little bit. “Getting off the ship” doesn’t mean eating things that exacerbate symptoms — it means taking a risk and doing something that you’re afraid of in order to live BETTER. Eating things that make you sick, ignoring your own needs, letting other tempt or tease you without regard to your comfort or well-being, isn’t helping you live well. I’d actually say that “getting off this ship” in your case isn’t eating without consideration of your symptoms, but doing the harder thing, the thing you might be afraid of or hesitant to do, which is standing up for yourself and your needs, and taking control of your symptom management. For many people “getting off the ship” means taking the step to be proactive, be positive, and do everything possible — even if it’s hard, even if it requires getting outside help, or changing things up in a big way — to enhance your health and your quality of life. Does that make sense?
I was recently diagnosed and finding it very hard to adjust to my new way of eating. I typically eat a lot of fiber. Thank you for your blog. It is a wealth of information. I just ordered your book. Can’t wait to read it.