An Acquired Brain Injury is marked by shock, loss and change.
With the passage of time, you can come to realise there are also gifts.
The wound is the place where light enters you.
~ Rumi
When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.
~ Viktor Frankl
~ Image credit: Min An on Pexels
Change is one thing. Acceptance is another.
~ Arundhati Roy, The God of Small Things
When I came across these words, they stopped me in my tracks. After my stroke, I understood them in a way I never had before. Change happened in an instant —brain injured, a life interrupted. But acceptance, that is slower and harder.
Buddha is often quoted as saying, “Change is never painful, only the resistance to change is painful.” And that resistance is where I found myself caught — fighting what had happened, wishing for what I couldn’t return to.
Michael J. Fox puts it plainly: “Acceptance doesn’t mean resignation; it means understanding that something is what it is and that there’s got to be a way through it.”
So it is. Change arrives without permission. Acceptance is a choice, day after day.
~ Image credit: shogun on Pixabay
When I tolerate anxiety, it’s like letting that part of me have a voice, listening to it and validating it. Once it’s been heard, it doesn’t need to shout at me anymore. And that’s the moment the feeling of anxiety starts to subside.
~ Sheila Bayliss, Mindfulness Teacher
Over the years, Sheila Bayliss’s words have become a quiet mantra for me. Last night, when panic crept in with its familiar urgency, I remembered to pause. I said to myself, “There’s anxiety here.” That simple acknowledgment began a softening. I noticed where anxiety sat—in my chest, my breath, my head, my thoughts. I placed a gentle hand over my heart and with curiosity and care, I listened. The shouting quietened. I share this not as a medical professional, but as someone who has walked beside anxiety for decades. It takes time and practice to learn to meet anxiety not with fear, but with care, curiosity and gentleness.
Medical Disclaimer:
This blog post shares personal reflections on my lived experience with anxiety and panic attacks. It is not intended as medical advice. Please consult a qualified health professional for diagnosis, treatment, or support with mental health conditions.
~ Image Credit: Simon Launay on Unsplash
Here’s a little something which might be useful …
To recover more quickly from life’s upsets, ask yourself three questions:
Is it true?
Can I do something about it?
Can I accept it and do something despite its presence?
If your answer to question No. 1 is “no,” drop it. If it’s “yes,” move on to question No. 2 and do the same thing over again. If there’s something you can do about it, do it ….. If not, go into “committed acceptance” – meaning, acknowledge what’s happened and accept it as your new normal.
~ Mo Gawdat
Whenever you deeply accept this moment as it is – no matter what form it takes – you are still, you are at peace.
~ Eckhart Tolle
~ Image credit: Roven Images on Pexels
Acceptance doesn’t mean resignation; it means understanding that something is what it is and that there’s got to be a way through it.
~ Michael J. Fox
I am not the story. The story is the power of optimism. That it’s really a choice. Acceptance doesn’t mean being resigned to something. You look at it and say: What does this truth require of me?
~ Michael J. Fox
~ Image: PublicDomainPictures on Pixabay
Going with the flow doesn’t mean you sit back passively and expect everything to work out. Going with the flow means you don’t cause yourself stress by fighting changes that are out of your control.
~ Image: Julia Harwood on Pixabay
Curating Quietude 