16 Journey Quotes About the Winding Road to Wellness

Ok, a little confession.

When I was housebound with juvenile rheumatism and ME/CFS  as a teenager, it used to annoy the hell out of me when people spoke about their (or mine!) ‘health journey’ in a deep way.

You probably know the tone; how they made it sound as if we unconsciously chose this painful path for ourselves (or that a higher power did) in order for us to grow personally and spiritually. In these statements, being terribly sick every single day was some meaningful experience with mostly positive outcomes.

I still feel that people should not project their own experiences and interpretations onto others. But now that I’m older, I do see how ‘journey’ can be a good metaphor for that long and winding road between sickness and health.

When you become chronically ill, you suddenly find yourself on a life path you’d never expected to travel. There’s no road map, no signs to put you in the right direction. You desperately want to go back to your old self, to where you were before, but you don’t know how to get there.

Still, you bravely embark on your road to recovery, hopeful you’re on the right track. But there are obstacles on your way, and surprises around the corner. You feel lost and you don’t want to be on this path any more, but you have little choice but to keep putting one foot in front of the other.

Despite my old resistance to the journey metaphor, here’s what I would say to my younger self about the road to wellness.

• Know where you’re going. You don’t have to have a clear destination – that might only set you up for disappointment when life does not go as planned. But have a general direction you’re moving towards. You don’t want to end up going around in circles. More practically, that means getting specific about what recovery looks like to you, and the steps you need to take to reach those recovery goals.
• Look out for tracks of those who’ve gone before you. You can learn a lot from the people who’ve been in your shoes, who know what it feels like to live with health problems every day. Soak up the tried-and-tested tips of living a good life with chronic illness, while learning more actionable advice on how you can improve your physical and mental health. It’s perfectly ok to follow in the footsteps of others.
• … But also don’t be afraid to forge your own path. Every body is unique. We all find ourselves in different situations. What works well for me, may not work well for you, so modify general advice to fit your own needs. Sometimes, you have to follow your gut through uncharted territory – but don’t ditch common sense.
• Don’t carry too much baggage. The recovery journey is hard enough without the weight of pain from the past on your shoulders. So let go of the things that weigh you down, no matter if that’s unresolved trauma, unhealthy habits, a critical inner voice or unsupportive people in your life.
• On your road to wellness, there may be times when you feel like you’ve reached the end of the road. The obstacles on your way just seem insurmountable. When you find yourself stranded, remember there’s more than one way to overcome your figurative mountains. You can climb, walk around them, dig a tunnel underneath, or build a shelter and wait for help – the choice is yours. Like Thomas Edison said, “When you have exhausted all possibilities, remember this: you haven’t.”
• Finally, it’s ok to take the scenic route. Of course you want to reach the finish line and get your health back as quickly as possible. But at the same time, this is your life. You don’t want to miss everything just to get to your destination. You’re allowed to pause and enjoy the journey – or at least savor the good moments. So don’t be afraid to leave the highway and take the trail.

For more metaphorical motivation, let’s have a look at 16 journey quotes about the winding road to wellness. 

How do you feel about the ‘health journey’ metaphor? Which journey quote do you relate to?