Waves of aching pulsing through your brain.
Sharp sensations shooting in your backside.
Intense cramping in your stomach.
Being in pain can seriously ruin your day. It’s no wonder most of us are quick to take a painkiller to stop the aching so we can get on with our lives. But mindlessly popping a pill can carry potential risks that may make you want to consider (complimentary) natural ways to ease your pain.
Here’s a little secret for healthy readers: Living with a chronic illness can feel a lot like starring in your own action hero movie.
Just like the on-screen stars, you’re faced with seemingly impossible challenges when you have serious health problems. Everyday living can seem like a quest, demanding extraordinary willpower to complete simple tasks and to achieve your goals.
Unfortunately, unlike our movie heroes, in real life you don’t always get inspirational speeches during those moments you’re struggling to hang on. So in my battle with chronic illness, I’ve often turned to action thrillers and epic adventures to fuel my motivation. Now I love all kinds of films, but the movies with a female protagonist literally kicking ass hold a special place in my heart.
Stories about a young blonde girl fighting (her) demons and struggling with the loneliness of being ‘different’? You don’t have to be Freud to understand why I could relate to heroines like Buffy when I first became ill as a teenager.
After countless hours of watching, here are the 5 most important lessons that my favourite fictional heroines have taught me about battling with chronic illness:
There are millions of websites and books out there about health, nutrition and fitness, all encouraging you to lead a healthier lifestyle. And yet, few health experts ever fully answer the question why you should actually try to improve your health behaviour.