#IWSG: A Ray of Hope

The first Wednesday of every month is the Insecure Writer's Support Group. Posts go up the 1st Wednesday of every month. Check it out here and join if you need support with your writing. Don't forget to stop by and say hi to the co-hosts: Pat Garcia, Sylvia Ney, Liesbet @ Roaming About Cathrina Constantine, and Natalie Aguirre!

December 2 question - Are there months or times of the year that you are more productive with your writing than other months, and why?

I have no idea if I'm more productive certain times of the year. I never pay much attention to when I'm really productive and when I'm not. My focus is on trying to be consistent.

Last month, I talked about the day job and my woes with finding someone to help me out with baking since I can only do part time. I'm happy to say the new lady I hired has been amazing. Halfway through her training week, my chronic pain flare hit and she ended up working on her own. She did awesome. Then when my pain flare came back around Thanksgiving, she did awesome again. I was able to take the time off and focus on self care and pain management. The other day when I popped in to get my paycheck and talk to her about what hours we'd work the next week I told her I loved her.

This along with starting physical therapy, getting a referral to see a foot doctor, and recent test results has left me hopeful that I'm finally on the right track to finding the root cause of my chronic health problems. I can see a glimpse of a life that isn't derailed completely every month. Already, the pain has lessened from 4 sessions of PT.

All this translates into more energy that I can put into writing. Right now, so much of my energy goes into managing my health and pain. I'd much rather spend that energy on writing. And for the first time I feel hopeful that that will be the case one day.

If you are a writer dealing with health issues of any kind, do not give up. Persist and keep digging. Bug your doctors to help you find the pieces of the puzzle and get answers. Never accept being told to just live with something. Our bodies are amazing and are capable of healing.