Do you feel like you are not the same person you were before you developed fibromyalgia? If so, you’re not alone. I’ve talked to hundreds of other fibromyalgia patients who have expressed similar sentiments.
Sadly, our society tends to evaluate people’s worth on the basis of external factors like beauty, physical prowess, wealth and power. The way the media glorifies these traits makes it easy to fall into the trap of believing that our value as a person is dependent upon how we look or what we do. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. You are a valuable person – not because of what you do, but because of who you are.
Discovering the Real You
As a human being, you are so much more than just a body; you also have a soul and spirit. Your physical body is only one part of the person who is you. It’s the outer shell that houses the real you inside.
It’s your soul that is the core of who you are – your personality. It’s what makes you unique. Your soul is how you think, feel, relate to others and understand yourself. The traits that define the real you reside in your soul.
Another important part of you is your spirit, which is your source of strength. It manifests itself as creativity, wisdom, insight, sensitivity and conscience. If you believe in God or a Higher Power, it’s your spirit that connects with that power.
Of all the parts that make up the real you, fibromyalgia only touches your body – the outer shell. Granted it can wreak havoc with your body, but it cannot affect your soul and spirit unless you allow it to. In fact, bodily limitations will often free the true you to grow and develop as never before.
It’s much like a seed. When you look at a flower seed, all you see is the outer shell, but within that shell is the life force of the flower. That flower cannot grow and bloom, however, until the seed is buried and the shell breaks open, releasing the hidden life force. Similarly, when your physical body “breaks,” your true beauty – found in the life forces within your soul and spirit – has an opportunity to grow and bloom.
