Grandma Gone Granola™: Simple, Inexpensive Tips for Healthy Living
Sometimes life doesn’t go the way we planned, which can be discouraging and even depressing. A friend, who for years had enjoyed the physical benefits of regular exercise, discovered its psychological power when her husband of thirty years asked for a divorce. “For three days,” she says, “I hid in my bedroom in disbelief. I didn’t even answer the telephone. But on the fourth day, I got up and out of the house and started running and walking again—because I knew I had to. As divorce matters intensified, it seemed the faster I ran, the better I handled the trauma.”
She also received weekly counseling. One day she told her counselor, “I’m not sleeping much. Sometimes I go to sleep at four in the morning and get up at five to run.”
He said, “You can survive without sleep. When you need the rest, it will happen. But don’t stop running, because that’s going to be your salvation. It’s going to keep your head together.” He also told her women often gain weight when their marriages dissolve, which adds to the feelings of inferiority that accompany the rejection.
“Running and walking rebuild self-esteem like nothing else,” says my friend. “When I got out of the house and breathed God’s fresh air, I couldn’t help but release tension. It’s not easy to run filled with anger, pain and self-pity. When I let it go, I ran lighter and was empowered to go on. I don’t know how it works, but as I walked and ran, the ugly drained out and strength flowed in. Pounding the pavement was a wonderful way to vent and a wonderful way to regain self-confidence.”
Is your heart heavy? Put on your walking shoes! Becky
Grandma Gone Granola Blog 