
Keep a Positive Mindset with Parkinson’s Disease: Think of yourself as the hero of your story
Menu: Tools to Maintain a Consistent Exercise Program
(lesson learned from reading a lot of books and watching too many movies)
We are each the hero of our own story and you have the power to write the script . Make your hero, someone worth cheering for. You get to determine what that hero does in fighting the bad guys or in the face of adversity. Will the hero in your story be one that people cheer for, or will the audience fall asleep after Act 1. Make your story one that brings out the best in others. The most interesting stories are those where our hero succeeds and kicks butt even when everything else is working against them, or takes on an unexpected challenge. Embrace the hurdles your hero has to overcome.
I love sports underdog movies. One of my favorites is Rocky. I sometimes think that in fighting Parkinson’s we are very much like Rocky. We are unlikely opponents against an imposing and undefeated adversary. We will train, we will take beatings and we will fall down. We will need our support team to help bandage us up and help us get psyched up for the next round. We may not win in the end, but by training hard, we will be strong and we will be able to go the distance with our heads held high.
Sometimes, when I think about throwing in the towel when a workout is really hard, I think of myself as the hero in a story, and what would I want that hero to do. A hero, for whom everything comes easily and never faces any challenges is not really all that intriguing. Take on new, unexpected challenges and bring others along with you for the ride. In the end you may even find yourself being grateful for some of the hurdles you have overcome.
Next: Focus on the positive, make the negative irrelevant
Menu: Tools to Maintain a Consistent Exercise Program
Who is your favorite superhero and why?
