Recovery Stories: Hilde's ME recovery story

Dear All!

I hope you all had a lovely Easter break. My family and I stayed at home and enjoyed the holiday in a quiet Oslo. All the others seemed to be in their cabins etc. It was snowing a lot, challenging outdoors and very cozy indoors!

I am following the "to do list"  and am now at: Write up your success story ......  My successes seem endless and I really don`t know where to start, so I will try to pick out the most life changing ones!

I came home from the LP-seminar on a Wednesday night. After 7 hours sleep I woke up, got the boys ready for school and went to a yoga class which is also attended by someone that I used to get anxious about seeing, but I felt happy and relaxed about it. After the yoga lesson I went shopping at the nearest mall and later I spoke with 3 ill friends who rang me and were curious about me and the seminar. I felt so relaxed and well, and talking about their health didn`t influence me at all, in the way it would have done before. The boys arrived from school. My husband had an arrangement at work and didn`t arrive before later that evening. So I help the boys with their homework, made dinner, went to an appointment at school with them, on my own and later got them to bed! This was my first day home after the 4 days trip to London. I didn`t have to lay down on the couch once! It was amazing!

All the following days have been as busy and great as this first one, but it will be too much to write about, so I will make a list of my best achievements below:

• I have been down hill skiing for 3 hours.
• I have made 2 cross country skiing trips (8 km and 11 km).
• I have been at the gym taken a lesson (every Friday from now).
• I have made appointments with the social insurance administration to discuss my working/studying  ability.
• I have rung the headmaster at school where I am employed to discuss a possible work training program (not teaching!)
• I have rung and talked with a civic employee about possibilities for work training at the local office.
• I have arranged a dinner party at Easter for 11 persons.
• I have rung and made several appointments with friends.
• I have said yes to a weekend trip to the mountain to visit friends I don`t know so well.
• I have bought myself flowers without feeling guilt (expensive ones)!
• I have bought clothes without feeling guilt.
• I am not having any anxiety and depression anymore. (If it begins , I can stop it efficiently).
• I am feeling tired anymore.
• I have stopped counting the hours I have slept.
• I have stopped counting what I have eaten during the day.
• I am feeling happiness!
• I have started to laugh again!
• We have bought a new car and I feel happiness, not guilt!
• I have reduced the appointments with my gestalt therapist.
• I have got a much thicker skin!
• I have been to town twice.
• I am eating normal bread again and it's fine ............

The list will continue with more achievements every week. I feel I have found the real me. And it is fantastic. I wake up feeling powerful and energetic and not afraid to fail, because late history shows I can do anything! I am filling my life with good experiences every day.

So this is my success story so far. Than you for showing me the way!

Take care all!

Kind regards

Hilde   April 2008