Oxygen for Mom
How many times have you been squeezed into an airplane seat and listened to a stewardess admonish: In case of an emergency, adults should put on their oxygen masks first, THEN help their children?
This is utterly counter-intuitive, yet when we hear it we know it makes sense. How can our children be OK if the people in charge are oxygen-deprived? This seems an apt metaphor for real life too, but mothers rarely follow this prescription…
A few springs ago, I spent months dragging my heels, chiding myself for being lazy and depressed, not taking my meds for hypo-thyroidism and wondering why I was starting to look like Kirstie Alley. It never occurred to me to make a doctor’s appointment for myself… Why? I was busy! I just thought I needed to pull myself together and be more self disciplined and then presto, I’d feel great again!
When I finally got my blood tested — because I was taking my kids in and I thought, what the hell — it led to a battery of tests (including a delightful colonoscopy) and I discovered that not only was I severely anemic, but I had celiac disease too.
No wonder I felt like something the cat dragged in. And I had been so hard on myself, so disgusted with my lack of stamina. This episode changed everything for me. It taught me to be much more compassionate toward myself.
Have you had a turning point like this? What does it take to treat ourselves with the same kindness and respect with which we treat the other people we love and take care of?