Over the course of time I have had to remind myself to deal with one issue at a time.
Why bother wasting time with the issue of not walking when I couldn't stand?
Naturally many stressful things can evolve out of having a stroke, loss of abilities, job, house, car, marriage and finances to name a few. There's an old saying, you don't know what you have until its gone. The stroke took many things and time and effort helped bring it back and with it came the appreciation for what I had and what I have.
Thinking about these issues every minute of the day is natural too but I remind myself my energy is better applied to issues one at a time and the one currently at my door.
Just as important as dealing with one issue at a time is appreciating every little thing, hence the 1000 Awesome Things talk and book. Just like a three year old sees the awesomeness in everything we need to regain this perspective.
Projecting things whether they are good or bad is something else I have tried to refrain from.
Doctors and therapists have projected onto me and other survivors that I have talked to. We have been told we will never walk again or that we will get completely better. Neither approach has been helpful.
My neurologist answered me best by saying "all people are different and so are strokes, I do not have a crystal ball and can not say how long, fast or to what degree recovery will happen". There are many variables and having a positive attitude with effort are essential and everyone is different in this regard as well.
Ultimately Michael J. Fox stated something I relate to strongly "there is a difference between acceptance and resignation, I accept that this is my situation but I don't resign myself that I will be this way forever"
I bring this up because this attitude is partially responsible for my positive attitude and the effort I put out to recover.
A stroke causes a foggy brain and I have really needed to keep things in priority and deal with one thing at a time, if not I risk being overwhelmed and whether they are good things or bad things, being being overwhelmed does not help progression, if anything it may have me regress.
