Often when we are sidelined with pain and illness, we stop dreaming - about who we want to become, what we want to do, things we want to experience, how we want to impact the world. This often leads to a profound sense of loss, fear, frustration, and sometimes depression. We can become trapped and immobilized by not only our physical pain, but our emotional distress as well.

But your pain doesn't have to stop you from living a fulfilling, exciting life! Your journey with pain is a unique opportunity to slow down, take a look at your life up to this point, and reinvent it. It all starts with reinventing your dreams! Dreams are the fuel that moves you from frustration to fulfillment and satisfaction! I invite you to start reinventing today!

Exercise

? Make a list of dreams and goals you've had in life.

? Choose two or three that leap out at you. As you do this, you might hear yourself saying things like, "Yeah right. Not anymore! I hurt too much to do that." If that's true, I think you'll get tremendous value from this exercise.

? Really think about those dreams. What is it that drew you to them? What's the essence? Is it something that's going to increase your pain? For how long? Will the excitement be worth an increased pain level for a few days? Is there a way you could accomplish the dream without increasing your pain?

Example I used to love hiking, until my health problems turned any attempt at a hike into a painful nightmare. So I reinvented that dream - maintaining the essence, but adjusting the method. Now I enjoy the beauty of nature in a way that is conducive to my current health by going for short walks on flat paths in the woods, or sitting on the beach, or riding my bike leisurely through the park.

? Brainstorm creative ways that you could reinvent the dream so that you experience what you really want in a way that supports your overall health and wellness. Ask for input from friends if you get stuck.

Example If you love to snowboard, but are not up to riding, maybe you could go watch a snowboard competition; take a gondola ride to the top of a local ski resort just to be in the midst of the energy (make sure you can also ride back down!); ride for an hour on the bunny hills; look into snowboard adaptations that would enable you to sit while riding; try inner tubing; and much more!

? Choose one item from your brainstorm list that you will look into in the next 24 hours. Be in motion towards achieving your dreams!

You can live a dream come true life. Even if your life is marked by pain!