My mind wouldn’t let me get sick, until ….

The mind is just amazing. If you set your mind to something, or away from something, it usually works, right? If you focus on something, it happens, whether it’s good or bad. This past month everyone around me has been sick – my husband, both women who work for me, all out & in bed for days with sickness. Many people coming into the office (or cancelling appointments) are sick. But not me. Nope. Not gonna let it happen. No time for that. I can’t take care of people if I’m sick. Right?

For Thanksgiving, I planned to take four days away in South Florida with my family. Four days of beach. Four days of running without hills. Four days of sun & relaxation. I work Wednesday morning and then I head to the airport (side note, the day before Thanksgiving it was surprisingly calm). About an hour into the flight, my throat started to feel scratchy and the sniffles started. I thought it was because of the confined airplane. But then it hit me hard & fast. By Wednesday night, I was asleep at 8:30pm because I felt miserable. I proceeded to sleep for the next two days, sneaking away for a family Thanksgiving meal on Thursday, but otherwise I slept. I felt horrible. Body aches. Sore throat. Congestion. So, I got adjusted. And I bought some Elderberry syrup from the local Whole Foods, and consumed that over the next several days (it was effective but more expensive, and not nearly as tasty as the fresh Elderberry syrup that my friend Amy makes and sells from our office).

My body probably had been fighting it and when I had four days to rest, it got me. My mind wouldn’t let it happen before then, I had no time to take off or no time to rest. But then when that time came, it was the perfect time to force me to rest and it was “okay” to be sick (if it’s ever okay to be sick). Earlier in the month during our Pathways Connect gathering, we discussed natural ways to fight the flu, with people providing input on what they did. For me, my answer was daily Juice Plus, daily Immuplex, Congaplex (at early onset of illness), Elderberry syrup, chiropractic adjustments and sleep. The magic for me is adjustments & sleep. The body cannot heal and repair effectively without it, and luckily, I was able to get adjusted and 2+ days of sleep which I believe drastically gave my body what it needed. Without sleep, illness drags on. Without adjustments, the nervous system and body cannot function as effectively. I feel that was key in helping me get through this in two days, instead of having this cold/flu/whatever it was, to linger on for days. And yes, I also think the Elderberry syrup made a big difference as well.

Three days ago, I had a hard time moving and staying awake. It hurt to swallow. And today I went on an 8-mile run. Finally. No hills, warm sunny temps. There is no way I could have recovered so fast and done that without sleep, adjustments & elderberry syrup. At least that’s what I believe.

So, the next time you get sick, what are you going to do? Take a bunch of medication to suppress the symptoms so you feel better, but then have a lingering illness that lasts for a week or more?  Or do things to support your body & immune system so you can fight it off naturally? I’m all for doing things to allow the body to work as well as possible, so you can be as heathy as possible.

As for now, I have to find some Thanksgiving leftovers so I can really enjoy some turkey & stuffing!