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There’s nothing like chronic illness to put your patience to the test. When you become sick, you spend a lot of time waiting – waiting to figure out what’s wrong with you, waiting for treatment options, waiting to find a new ‘normal’ again. There are no quick fixes or overnight cures.
And all the while, your illness doesn’t take a break. That’s the big difference between getting worked up over being stuck in traffic or other irritating situations – you can’t escape your own body and mind.
The urban dictionary defines patience as ‘the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, problems or suffering without becoming annoyed or anxious.’ But in a world of instant gratification, being patient is slowly becoming an old-fashioned virtue.
Practicing mindfulness can help you grow your patience, whether that’s doing breathing exercises, a walking meditation or grounding yourself in the present moment. If you’re literally stuck in the waiting room feeling overwhelmed, you could also try to take your mind off your problems with positive distractions, like listening to a fun podcast. Endlessly scrolling your phone, on the other hand, will give you a short boost of the “reward chemical” dopamine, but seems to only make you feel more impatient and bored in the long run.
Finally, when you can’t take any further action to solve your problems, and there’s nothing left you can do to change or speed up the situation, you have no choice but to slowly start accepting your current reality.
Take a look at these 14 patience quotes to help you hang in there when your persistence is being tested.
Which patience quotes help you to keep your cool during stressful times?
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