Goal kicking 4 years on!

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Photo by Farid Askerov on Unsplash

It occurred to me that I’ve just hit my ME/CFS anniversary and I think it’s safe to say that I’ve kicked it to the curb! This past year has been filled with a bit of goal kicking and it’s not stopping anytime soon! Yeooow!!!

Four years ago, I can still vividly remember how my health went downhill fast.  The first year was the hardest, I barely had wins and as much as I tried to keep positive it was hard.  I held onto goals and put up pictures of things that symbolised my goals. I convinced myself that I would achieve these goals one day…….even though at the time, it seemed hard to believe. I held onto the idea and kept it for when I needed it the most.

Finally, I have achieved a number of these goals. I am extremely proud, to say four years on I am celebrating and smashing my goals! The hard work has paid off and most of all, the illness is no longer ruling my world.

A huge victory is that I am heading to South America in a few days, yep you heard right!!! It’s literally days away. South America became a long-term goal of mine when I become unwell. Most of my close family and friends know this and probably got sick of me saying one day I’m going to go when I get better! Haha well that day has finally arrived and I am pinching myself! I really can’t believe it has arrived.

It is very random how it all came about, it happened to be in my very early days of my illness. At the time, the doctors still didn’t know what was wrong with me.  I was trying to keep positive throughout the whole ordeal and I decided to make an inspiration board of what I was going to do or work towards when I got well enough. The picture of Machu Picchu came to me, I had no desire to visit it before. But that image of Machu Picchu stuck with me and I thought to myself ” I’m going, when I’m well enough.”

And it’s been with me ever since.

City2surf is another big thing that I have been working towards, which I’m excitedly fit enough for. City2surf is happening in August which I am excited to be competing in the event and I have also been fundraising for it. The charity I have chosen to fundraise for is emerge, they are an Australian based charity that dedicates themselves to raising awareness and funds to research for ME/CFS.

Returning to work and working like a normal person would, was another big goal. DONE! This also includes other living “like a normal person” life goals again. DONE!

My next ass kicking goal will be a tough one and means heading back to school! Bring it on!

It’s not until you lose something, that really puts things and life into prospective for you.

Any way my friends it’s time for me to love and leave you, I need to go pack!

Can’t wait to tell you all about my South American adventure.

Much love

Lennae xxx

Photo by Abraham Osorio on Unsplash

Wrapping up 2016 and Bringing on 2017!

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Photo credit @a.m_banks- Instagram

Photo credit @a.m_banks- Instagram

Welcome to 2017….. Where on earth did 2016 go!!!

I know I’m a little late to the party, but I can’t help myself I love wrapping up a year that’s passed and looking forward to the beginnings of a year ahead! I don’t know about you guys, but a new year just brings a whole lot of exciting and endless possibilities!!!

Although I can’t say I have completely recovered from ME/CFS (Myalgic encephalomyelitis/ chronic fatigue syndrome) I am more functional and active than what I have been in a long time. 2016 was a good year for me, my health turned it up a notch and showed me that my days with ME/CFS are becoming more like it was all just a bad dream.

Throughout 2016 I did have a few issues with my health, but they ended up not being ME/CFS related. How good is that!
2016 showed me a normal and active life, that I am more than welcoming back. I was able to work my way up to working 15 hours a week and maintain that. I will increase the hours more at some stage, but right now I am happily enjoying this work life balance. I also enjoyed a bit of travelling, going interstate, as well as heading over to Singapore off on a cruise. I remember feeling on the cruise like I wasn’t a sick person (how amazing is that). I was also studying some of last year, however I did have to place my studies on hold. I hope to continue them at some stage, possibly in a years time. Putting my studies on hold allowed me time to complete my main goal of returning to work and also allowed me to focus more on my fitness. Which Snowy and I have been loving!

Anyway enough about 2016, we are now in 2017!!!

Whoohoo, bring it on!!!

This year one of my main goals that I will achieve, is dedicated to when I first became unwell. When I first became unwell in 2013, I could barely move. At the time all I could do was lay in bed or on the couch. I did a lot of soul searching and googling online about ME/CFS and came across mostly negative stories. This did not help my frame of mind, I needed something positive. I had no idea when I would get better or how long it would take. However I needed something to look forward to. I decided to make a vision board, it was something I hung on my wall, where I looked every day and helped when I wasn’t feeling the best (which at that stage was everyday). My vision board consisted of destinations that I wanted to visit and stuff that I wanted to be doing once I finally started to get better. The one thing that stuck out to me however was Machu Picchu. I have no idea why, it just did. I decided when I was finally well enough and able too I would go there someday. Thankfully my beautiful friends I am well enough to get my butt over to that amazing place and show ME/CFS who the boss is now!!!

To some it may not seem like a big deal, but to someone that has been suffering with a chronic illness it means having your life back. Suffering from a chronic illness is hard work, but recovering from one is even harder. Achieving your goals is rewarding, here’s to a year full of achieving your goals and setting new ones.

Have a happy 2017 my friends! I hope you all have a fantastic year ahead, sending lots of love, hugs, spoons and positive vibes your way.

Lennae xxx

Photo credit @a.m_banks- instagram

Photo credit @a.m_banks- instagram

Photo credit @a.m_banks- instagram

Photo credit @a.m_banks- instagram

New day, new year, new GOALS!

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Credit @abanksy1 Instagram

Credit @abanksy1 Instagram


New day, new year, new beginnings.

At the end of every year we look back and reflect on what we have and haven’t achieved and what we have and haven’t done. We then go ahead and set more or less the same goals, plus a few more and bigger ones.

I’m allowed to dream, but sometimes I find I set myself up to fail with all this goal setting!

Since I’ve been living with my Chronic fatigue, I’ve learned to do things differently with my hopes and dreams. I’ve always had high expectations of myself and it can be extremely frustrating when I want something so bad, but can’t get there due to circumstances out of my control. That’s why I feel that it’s important to re-assess where you’re at regularly. Your circumstances are always changing, it’s important to factor them all in.

I want to share with you all a few of my tips that I have found to be quite useful;

Write your goals down. All of them…… Big goals, small goals, short- term, mid- term and long- term goals. Write them all down, tell the world and get them out there. Writing your goals down gives a sense of organisation, we want to make this happen! These goals are going to be my b****!!!

Regularly review your goals. To track your progress you need to regularly review your goals. Do you need to re-assess any of them at all? You may need to re-evaluate your goals, are you being realistic? Or are you exceeding your exceptions. Its ok you will get there, it may take more time. Only time can tell.

Try new ways to achieve your goals. Some goals need a time-frame while others do not. Try different tactics and try looking at your goals a little differently. Think outside the square. Be realistic and don’t be too hard on yourself.

Focus on one goal at a time. It can get a little overwhelming if you try and attempt all you goals at once. Focus and prioritise your energy on one thing at a time. It will all fall into place with patience and persistence.

Create a vision board of your goals. If you’re a visual person cutting out pictures and making a board can help you visualise your goals. Keep your board somewhere where you can see it daily. Or put pictures up around your home, preferably rooms you use regularly. The pictures become small daily reminders of your goals.

Enjoy the journey. The Journey is where you put in all your energy and hard work, enjoy it. Achieving your goal will bring you a sense fulfillment and achievement, however the journey you have traveled always brings a sense of pride and relief when reflecting on what has been achieved.

Remember, tomorrow brings a new day to try and start again. It’s not easy, but you can always start again. “Try and fail, but don’t fail to try”.

Happy new year my beautiful readers, I thank you all for all your love and support! I wish you all an amazing 2016!

Much love

Lennae xxx

Credit @abanksy1 Instagram

Credit @abanksy1 Instagram

Get active with ME!

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I like to keep active when I can, however living with ME/CFS can limit my activities. The key is all about balancing what you can, when you can!

I think its important to keep active, that may mean changing or limiting your exercise activity to what is suited best for your body and it’s needs. Small movement is better than no movement, our body needs movement to get the blood pumping. There are so many different ways you can incorporate exercise into your day, so here’s a little insight of what I do to get active.

If you follow me on Instagram, you will know that my pooch Snow Bear likes her walkies! Especially at the beach!

Snow Bear and I like to go for a couple of 30 minute walks a week. If I have the spare energy we might push it a bit longer or even fit in another walk. But we always make sure we hit the beach for a walk, the sea air is so refreshing and does wonders for the soul.

Stretching and yoga is also a huge part of my exercise routine. I make sure I keep this up everyday, the amount of time I spend stretching depends on how my body feels. My stretching time usually ranges from 5 – 30 minutes, incorporating light stretches, restorative yoga and more challenging poses when my energy levels are high. I occasionally attend yoga classes when possible, but mostly my stretching routine is done in my own backyard.

I enjoy my exercise activities, it may not seem like a lot but it can definitely be challenging for me at times. It suits my current lifestyle whilst still pushing and motivating me.

You should always look good and feel comfortable while you’re getting active. If you like the look of my Cheeta Recovery compression tights you can invest in a pair by clicking here. They are great quality and very affordable. Cheeta Recovery cater for men and women, as well as all shapes and sizes. Make sure you use my discount code LWCR05, to get $5 off your purchase. I can assure you they a worth the investment, nothing beats comfortable exercise wear.

What type of activities do you do to keep active?

Namaste

Lennae xxx

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Keep Trying!

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It’s been a while since I’ve given an update on how I’m travelling and to be honest it’s been a bit of a bumpy past 6 weeks with my ME/CFS. I guess it should to be expected though, you should never under estimate the power of your chronic illness (especially when you don’t listen to your body). So here’s an update on my happenings.

I had been increasing my hours at work and I managed to get up to working 8 hours over 2 days a week. Excitement overload! I was working 4 hours a day, that’s half a day!

Being able to work again felt great, but working only 8 hours was starting to not be good enough. In my mind I wanted to be able to work more. My mind was racing well ahead to what I wanted to be doing, rather than what I should be doing. All I wanted to do was keep pushing and eventually I would be at my current goal of working 15 hours a week. In theory it sounded easy enough. I wanted to keep pushing myself to my limit and that meant that I wasn’t taking notice of the fact that I was going to push a little too hard and crash.

Well that happened, straight after I realised maybe I should just calm it down a bit. After pushing through a day at work, I struggled to recover back from it. I thought I would need one week off to rest, but that turned into five!

All I can say is lesson is learnt! It’s all well and good to push yourself, but sometimes you need to take a step back and listen to what your body is trying to tell you.

After 5 weeks off with lots of rest and time to reflect here’s what I learnt;

Patience. You will get to where you want to be eventually, it just takes time.

Stop comparing yourself to others. Don’t compare your beginning to someone else’s middle.

Be kind to yourself. We are our biggest critic of ourselves, how about giving yourself a kind compliment instead of beating yourself up all the time.

Listen to your body. Yes it does communicate with you, make sure you listen to it!

Don’t give up. No matter how much this situation may feel like it is dragging on, it won’t last forever so keep trying, you will get there!

On that note I went back to work last week and managed a couple of hours, it felt great to be back at it again. I’m back at the start but that’s ok, I know I will get to where I want to be eventually. It might not be today or tomorrow but it will happen.

Much love,

Lennae xxx

photo credit: Hope via photopin (license)

photo credit: Hope via photopin (license)

photo credit: quote #63 via photopin (license)

photo credit: quote #63 via photopin (license)

Fitbit Craze

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My Fitbit, the "One."

My Fitbit, the “One.”

Ok so who’s joined the fit bit craze? Yes, that would be me! I have turned into one of those people that is constantly looking at my Fitbit, checking it every 5 minutes to see how many steps I have done.

For those of you that aren’t part of the Fitbit craze, I’ll enlighten you a little. It’s basically a step counter, yes I know it sounds extremely exciting! Here’s where I share with you why this step counter is so amazing!

It tells you important information like the distance you walk, the calories you burn, your heart rate, the number of steps you have climbed and keeps records on all your daily averages. There is even an app that you can login into and allows you to take things to the next level by tracking your weight, sleep, water and food intake. You can even join groups and add friends and track their progress.

The Fitbit range includes wrist bands, watches and clips that attach to your clothing, you can even purchase fancy scales that connect to your Fitbit. I’m yet to buy these.

Of course these days your smartphone can do this all for you, but who needs their phone on them 24/7 when you have a Fitbit! Right?

I personally love my Fitbit! It definitely is helpful for those that are trying to exercise or up there activity levels. Very useful for a chronic illness sufferer like myself.

If you want to invest in one of these bad boys I highly recommend it!

Anywho it’s time I go do some steps, I’ve only done 631 today! OMG!!

Bye for now

Lennae xxx

Fitbit monthly graph.

Fitbit monthly graph.

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