November 13, 2018 marked the 23rd anniversary since developing Cervical Dystonia. In the past I have shared my story which you may read on my blog https://ofuniversalmind.wordpress.com/2015/11/13/thankful-for-cervical-dystonia
Living with dystonia has not always been an easy journey. The physical and emotional struggle may be overwhelming on days, yet dystonia has not stopped me from becoming the type of person I wish to Be.
Over the past 23 years I have been blessed to meet, chat with and help hundreds of people worldwide who also have cervical dystonia. My message is of hope and encouragement that ‘tomorrow does not have to be as hard as today’.
A main component of healing is ‘reflection’. In order to reflect one must slow down and take hold of the present moment. Breathwork is essential in centering the mind and easing the body.
One of the greatest gifts I gave to myself to heal my body from the torture of cervical dystonia was ‘to believe, I am my greatest healer’. To me this meant that I no longer wanted to look outside of myself to heal my body. I decided no drug/or meds, no body work from others and no longing for the right doctor or medical intervention to heal me. For me, healing must begin on an emotional and spiritual level to truly heal on a physical level.
It is when I began to turn inward to focus on my life, my relationships, my purpose, my strengths, my failures, my successes, my presence and my being that I began to learn ‘why dystonia’.
I began to think of those things in my life that I turned away from and how God, Universe, Spirit redirected my path to simplify my life, allowing me to slow down and to remove myself from unnecessary chaos. It is here where I find the bliss in my new reality.
Many of us long for our ‘old life’ before dystonia, possibility longing to do something that we feel we no longer may be able to achieve. For some it may mean we must forgo a dream to marry, have children, continue our education, travel, socialize or simply engage in life.
I too long for certain things in my life. Often, I hesitate to pursue a dream because of my dystonia and how my body may react. In those situations, I have learned to ask myself if I would want or be able to pursue the same desire if I didn’t have dystonia. Would I be willing to follow my heart to manifest what I believe I longed for? If the answer was ‘yes’ then no amount of dystonia in my body would be able to hold me back from living my Dreams. In my heart, gut and soul, if the answer was ‘no’, I have learned to continue on my path with my head held high as I reflect upon the Me I know and want to Be.
Healing from Dystonia is like the movement of thought (the mind) and water (our emotions). It is when the mind and emotions flow in harmony that we can know our worth, engage in reality and transcend the impossible.
Dystonia has been my greatest teacher. Dystonia led me toward my path to help others tell and shape their life story, gain spiritual insight and to heal from the cosmic bruise upon the soul.
Many blessings and depth of healing,
Linda Furiate
Spiritual Mentor, Recovery Coach, Healthy Habits Expert