[Anonymous]

#1020090

The holidays can be tiring, even for those people who are not ill. For those of us who are in the throes of hyperthyroidism, or recovering from it, the holidays pose a real challenge: how to enjoy them without wiping out our puny reserves of strength.

I had my RAI the week before Thanksgiving one year, and had dropped down into hypothyroid levels of hormone by the New Year. That holiday season was a challenge. But I love the holidays, and I had kids at home, and I wanted to do what I could to make them wonderful, for me and for my family. After the season was over, my oldest child told me that the holidays had been the best ever; that I had gone “all out.” But I hadn’t. I had pulled way back. I had not done nearly all of the things that I would normally have done. What became crystal clear to me with my daughter’s remark was that what I normally did wasn’t the important thing: sharing good times with the family was the important thing.

So, I have some suggestions for thriving during the season, while you are ill:

First: prioritize. Not everything that we normally do is necessary. Anything that isn’t necessary, eliminate.

If you have trouble figuring out what to eliminate use a simple rule of thumb: if your best friend was feeling the way you do now, would you expect her/him to do “X” for your holiday pleasure? If the answer is “no” then eliminate it. Be your OWN best friend this year.

Second: simplify. Not everything we do has to be done the way we normally do it. For example: spending an entire day standing in the kitchen, cooking an elaborate meal is next to impossible for many of us. The deli sections of many grocery stores make food nowadays. I see packages of cooked stuffings, mashed potatoes, green beans, etc. It’s OK to buy these things to make food preparation easier. The year I was going through treatment the only thing I did myself was stick a turkey in an oven. The rest of the food was made by the grocery store. And it was very tasty. If your grocery store does not cook food, the freezer section contains it, ready to pop into an oven. So, no, it is not YOUR recipe for something, but this is only one year, and the family will survive.

Third: Once you have eliminated, and simplified, PLAN. Do not try to do everything at once, or at the last minute. Space activities out, taking large rest breaks in between. Conserve your energies for the important thing — enjoying your friends and family.

I am leaving for two weeks, and won’t be here on the board for the Holidays. I want to wish all of you happy ones, healthy ones. And I hope you are all feeling much better soon, during the New Year.

Bobbi — NGDF Online Facilitator

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