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The Cystic Fibrosis Positive Outlook 

By Spencer Burton

Living with Cystic Fibrosis, or any illness, can cause a myriad of emotions and feelings, many of which can be unwanted and destructive. It is very natural to undergo emotions of  anger and fear from all of the bleak outlooks and “facts”surrounding CF and other illnesses you may have read or been told. In result, these feelings can have a lasting impression on your perspective, and if not dealt with properly, can even shorten your life. Truth be told, your perspective is all you have. All the treatments in the world will not make you thrive and exude health if in your mind and heart you have taken on an unhealthy perspective. You must first plant a good seed to grow a good apple.

So, ask yourself some questions. Do you want to be a victim of unfortunate circumstance? Or do you want to take the control back, and steer your own ship? Your perspective on life has everything to do with your own health.

If you cannot see yourself as healthy, you cannot possibly be. Being physically healthy starts with the proper mental perspective on your life and your situation. YOU CAN be healthy and happy despite your condition. The following are a few points to consider in changing your perspective from weak, to warrior.

Accept Yourself!

If you have an illness like CF, you need to face it! I’m here to tell you from experience that denying that you have it, will complicate your life and lead you astray from your true purpose. When I was younger I did not want to believe I had a condition. I thought it kept me from being a normal person. I had doctors telling me grim statistics and life expectancies, and honestly I didn’t feel sick. This made me angry, and my anger and fear was mischanneled to all kinds of problems for me, but eventually, once I had accepted it, I gave myself permission to just feel healthy and happy and not listen to the negativity that was imposed upon me. Today, I believe my cf is a blessing. I live my life today with vibrance and energy, and I have a wealth of wisdom and life experience that I would have never had had I been born without it. Accepting and loving yourself is KEY in living healthy and experiencing life’s wonders.

Are You Excited About Your Life?

Do you wake up everyday with purpose and a drive for something greater? Do you strive for a passion and take time to experience the marvels around you? One of the reasons we are alive is to experience bliss and fulfillment in our lives. Ghandi, Buddha, and Jesus along with Bob Marley, John Lennon and Ray Charles all had a purpose in their lives, and all faced huge hardships. Did this shake the core of what they stood for? Absolutely not, in fact it reinforced their life works and proved they had depth of purpose. If you have a disease, use it to fuel your passion for life. Use it to feel grateful, to live in the present moment only, and most of all, use it to pave the way to happiness, not to obstruct it.

Don’t Believe Everything You Hear

What if someone told Lance Armstrong to give up when he was diagnosed with cancer? In fact, they did! People did tell him to give up, and what did he do? He went on to be a champion, he went on the warrior’s path and conquered all the negative words thrown his way from doctors and skeptics. He proved that scientific statistics and expectancies, were just numbers. He saw himself as much bigger than his ailments, and saw himself as the deciding factor in the choice between life or death. He believed he could, and with hard work, he simply did.

Here is the absolute truth; YOU are much bigger and greater than your illness, or any circumstance life throws at you. YOU say what you can and cannot do. YOU are the creator of your life’s circumstance. You do not have to be Lance Armstrong to overcome the odds of your illness, but you must understand that your thoughts, your drive, and your ambition can conquer any wall that a disease or diagnosis can put up. You are the captain of your own ship, so steer it to the safe waters of heath, wealth and success.

Live Like a Warrior!

Don’t be fooled into thinking that just because you are happy, and positive, and have ambition that you can get out of doing the real work that it takes to fight an uphill battle. Living with illness means you must recalibrate your daily life to make yourself do the extra work. Take the time to plan out your warriors attack. Make promises to yourself, and keep them. Beat the odds because you have chosen to. If you have cf, and you know you need to run or bike or get cardio….get up and do it with no excuses. Get organized, get a schedule and make time for your health above all else. You haven’t got time to feel sorry for yourself and feel hopeless. Those feelings are for sick people. You are a warrior, and you are strong, so get yourself a healthy perspective and Live Indubiously! 

Make sure to read through the other cf related articles on this site for more information on health, wealth and success!