Tuesday, May 22, 2007

Wherever You Go, There You Are


"WHEREVER YOU GO, THERE YOU ARE"

The significance of this statement is that it can teach you to stop constantly wishing you were somewhere else.
. . .

The truth is, if you have destructive mental habits -- if you get annoyed and bothered easily, if you feel angry and frustrated a great deal of the time, or if you're constantly wishing things were different, these identical tendencies will follow you, wherever you go. And the reverse is also true. If you are a generally happy person who rarely gets annoyed and bothered, then you can move from place to place, from person to person, with very little negative impact.
. . .

Something wonderful begins to happen with the simple realization that life, like an automobile, is driven from the inside out, not the other way around.

Excerpts from Don't Sweat The Small Stuff ...

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Clearly, the author of this book doesn't have to deal with a medically involved child, physicians, nursing agencies, DMEs, insurance companies, or school districts on a regular basis :-) I'm almost finished with the book and my take on it is that the author's approach to dealing with what life throws at you is a bit too simplistic -- at least in my reality. Admittedly, there are a few good ideas and exercises that I can take from the book and realistically apply to daily life. It's a decent read, but I don't think I'd take it as gospel.

Where am I today? I'm in a good place today. I mustered up the energy to call United Healthcare and was fortunate to get a customer service rep who didn't give me any grief, who understood the error and sent the charges back through for reprocessing, and who didn't lecture me on how the system works (pleeeaassee!) Best of all . . . I was off the phone in less than a half hour. Life is good!

I also emailed two of Jack's doctors in St. Louis with questions and I heard back from both of them within hours of hitting the "send" button. I just love our docs in St. Louis (save one) . . . they are accessible, responsive, respectful and compassionate. Too bad they are 1500 miles away.

Where are you today? Hopefully, not wishing you were somewhere else.

Ciao.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Ann
sorry I've not checked in for a couple of days. John is away on business and Sam has been taking charge of the computer to play his games. Sorry you had such grief about the button, what a nightmare. I often wonder how these people sleep at night! Glad to hear Jack's St Louis drs are on the ball and really pleased to hear you are having a better day.
Also, glad your trip went well - your sister looks very pleased to have graduated.

(((HUGS)))
JUliex

Anonymous said...

Glad you are in a good place today. I hope it stays that way!:)

Cindy said...

I haven't read the book, but I have a feeling that it's not so much that the advice is too simplistic, it's our lives that are too complicated. I know many people who unnecessarily complicate their own lives. But for parents of kids with disabilities, we have little control over the things that make our lives difficult. The best we can do is simplify what we can control and don't sweat the small stuff. I don't think it's all small stuff, but our kids can sure teach us the difference:-)