Taking breaks when hurt
29 Jan 2015I’m sick. It sucks. I consider this my winter sickness, and I know it’ll pass in a day or two but I’m not happy about it. I am however better at dealing with it.
As a child (and up until fairly recently) I assumed that if I ignored something it didn’t exist.
- Did I wake up with that tingle in my throat that means I’ll be swallowing jagged knives for the next couple days?
- Is my finger feeling vaguely weak and tweaky while climbing?
- Are my knees popping during Capoeira?
If I ignore those feelings, and keep pushing at my busy day or keep climbing, I’ll be fine. My body will finally get that I don’t have the time or patience for its crap and get its act together. Right?
If only it worked like that.
I’m not sure if age or wisdom plays a part (unlikely), but I’ve started to allow my body and health to have a say in my day-to-day experiences. I know that if I don’t rest my sick self my body is gonna get pissed and stay weak, or pop a tendon in retaliation. So, I’ve started listening when it complains and giving myself rest, even if that means not doing what I want or letting people down. As a result, I end up injured or sick less. Nothing groundbreaking here… listen to your needs.
And listen to your needs in all things. I’ll try to get back to this in a later post, but there are times when you need to rest your mind, body, or spirit. That might mean seeing friends over work, or working over friends, or just sitting alone in a dark room.
You do you boo-boo.