This Year, I’m Thankful for the Good and the Bad
After I’ve put away my Halloween decorations and watched my final viewing of the movie “Hocus Pocus“ for the year, my thoughts turn to Thanksgiving. As October becomes November, I always begin to ponder what I’m thankful for. It hasn’t always been easy for me to come up with things.
My life felt a little bleak that first Thanksgiving after being diagnosed with myasthenia gravis (MG). I was on many different medications, but had not yet had a thymectomy, so my muscles were still weak. I was able to breathe and walk around without any assistance, but chewing was difficult.
Like many people who celebrate Thanksgiving, I always plan to eat a lot of food. Although the muscles around my mouth were weak, I was still looking forward to loading my plate up with everything from turkey to cranberry sauce. But that year, I wasn’t able to chow down like I normally can. After a few bites I had to stop.
Not being able to eat left me feeling not very thankful.
But ever since that difficult Thanksgiving, I have made the effort to be more aware of the good things in my life. It’s easy to get caught up in the negative things, especially when they aren’t going the way we want them to. But I know that dwelling on the bad details doesn’t help anything. It’s better to remember what I have to be grateful for, instead of being resentful about the things that have gone wrong.
So this year, I’m thinking about all of the good that’s in my life. My MG has been in remission for years, thanks to my medical team. I still have tiny flare-ups here and there, but it’s nothing I can’t handle.
When I think about how I can walk, eat, talk, and live without assistance, I become overwhelmed with gratitude. There are so many people who don’t have the ability to do these things on their own. I will always be grateful for what I am still able to do.
MG may have altered my life in ways I never thought possible, but it has also made me appreciative of what I have. One of the great lessons this disease has taught me is that we truly don’t know what we have until it’s taken away from us. So, this Thanksgiving, I’m thinking about what I do have and how lucky I am to still be here. Whether I can quickly scarf down a giant plate of food or not doesn’t matter. If I’m still breathing, I still have a reason to be thankful.
And what better time to be thankful than at Thanksgiving?
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Comments
RAMESH
Thank you for your input. I have been diagnosed with MG last year and on Distinon. My symptoms are around my left eyelid drooping and weakness in the morning. How to overcome....
Ronald
I post for my husband as he has no computer skills......but reads everything I see and he enjoys learning from others. My name is doris. And I work side by side with my hubby.
Thank you everyone who has shared their experiences as it helps us both.
William Gallagher
I am thankful as an MG patient to have only a mild case since 2017. I am thankful as the Pilgrims were for God’s blessing on my life.