A guest post by George Mortimer
“It’s not whether you get knocked down; it’s whether you get up.” Vince Lombardi
Not everyone’s worst moments look the same.
You may have lost your job, gotten divorced or made a terrible financial decision.
Our circumstances may be different, but the journey to overcome them is quite similar.
My rock bottom was the deterioration of my health.
Growing up I ate whatever I wanted. I figured as long as I worked out and stayed active it didn’t matter what went into my body.
I was playing NCAA basketball. I worked out 7 days a week. I was in great shape. All while eating a diet consisting of take out food and the dollar menu.
In my second year of college my habits caught up to me. I woke up one morning with a dagger sharp pain in my stomach I’ve never felt before.
I spent two days in bed before deciding I needed to go to the hospital. Once I got there I didn’t leave for five days.
Turns out I had a severe case of Pancreatitis. Basically, part of my Pancreas was dead.
“Dead is dead.”
The doctor told me, if I didn’t take care of myself, it would spread and kill me.
I couldn’t believe it. On the outside, I looked completely healthy, but inside my body was literally falling apart.
When I was released to go home I had two choices: continue the downward spiral of not taking care of myself or, I could start making changes.
Changing the past is never an option, we can only deal with life by each moment.
Before I could change I had to admit that who I was wasn’t who I was supposed to be.
The Defining Moment To Turn Your Life Around
“The best thing about the future is that it comes one day at a time.” – Abraham Lincoln
Once you accept what life’s handed to you, you can focus on what you need to do to make things better.
Realizing where I was, being only 19 and seeing where I was headed if I continued my poor habits, the decision to change was simple.
When your life crashes to the ground and you’re unhappy with your current situation, it comes down to making the decision to change.
Starting a new diet or finding a therapist, sure, those are great ideas. But it’s useless action if you aren’t certain you want to turn your life around.
You can do whatever you want with your body but none of it will matter if you don’t bring your mind with you.
The Beauty Of Revival
After leaving the hospital, I started making changes in the food I consumed and found passion in taking care of myself.
The biggest change, however, was in my mind.
Part of my pancreas was no longer alive. A once living part of my body was now dead. Instead of letting it ruin me, I decided it meant the rest of me needed to come to life.
I started listening to my body and how it felt. Life came one step at a time. As a by-product of my body feeling better, I felt lighter and happier as well.
Turns out the changes I made would pay off greater than I ever expected.
Five months later I was back in the hospital to meet with the doctor for a check up. I was put to sleep so he could put a microscopic camera down my throat to get a better look at my Pancreas.
When I woke up even the daze from the anesthesia couldn’t hide the amazement I saw in the doctor’s eyes.
“Your Pancreas has fully restored and looks perfectly normal. I’m not sure how, but it’s revived.”
What the doctor also didn’t know was that it wasn’t only my pancreas, but my entire life that had gone through a revival.
Realizing the seriousness of my situation, that my poor habits could destroy me if I continued them, I found new meaning in life.
It was only when I heard that part of my body was dead that I fully understood how fragile life truly is. More importantly, I learned how crucial it is to enjoy every ounce of the life we have.
So crucial, in fact, that it brought a non-functional part of my body back to life.
The Greatest Comeback Of Your Life
“It’s not what you go through that defines you. It’s what you do after you’ve gone through it that really tests who you are.” – Unknown
Maybe your health has been a challenge.
Your family and friends might have it easier than you, and it’s not fair.
But no matter how difficult your health journey, no matter how much you’ve gone through, you can turn it around starting now.
Looking back, there were three steps I took to turn my negative experience into a positive outcome.
1) Accept – Embrace the past and accept there’s nothing you can do about what’s already happened.
Before I could take better care of my health I had to understand what I was doing that put myself in the position I was in, such as poor nutrition and staying up late. I had to accept what my choices led to and put it behind me.
2) Correct – In every circumstance there’s things you did well and things you didn’t do well. Your job is to maximize the first and minimize the latter.
Even though my eating habits weren’t great, I worked out every day, which was a confidence boost for me. I knew I was taking care of my body at least in one way and I used it as motivation to start a healthier diet.
3) Relax – Life is a work in progress. Things won’t happen overnight and it’s inevitable that you’ll still make mistakes. Trust the process and believe that if you stick with it, good things will happen.
While I’ve never eaten fast food since, I do slip up with my sweet tooth sometimes. I don’t get down on myself when it happens. It’s a reminder to not take life so seriously and that as long as my next meal is healthy I’ll be okay.
If you want to make a comeback, these simple steps will get you started. Because the truth is, you’ve been through enough. It’s time for you to experience true happiness and how great life can be.
You deserve something better, and it’s time for you to have it.
One Last Thing
When I was sent home from the hospital I had two decisions: to do nothing and accept my fate, or take action and change my life.
Now you have to make the same decision.
When it all boils down, turning your life into a life you love and appreciate starts with you.
No one can make you change, no one can make you see the world through a new lens.
No one can tell you what to do with your life.
That power lies within you.
George Mortimer lives in his van to pursue a life of freedom. He works online to inspire people like you to create more freedom and live a life you love. Download his two brand new ebooks for free here.