Being admitted to the hospital wasn’t exactly how I expected to start No Hustle November, but it sure goes with the theme.
A slew of doctors are trying to figure out all the things that have gone berserk with my body. But at this point, it seems likely the root of it all is systemic lupus.
Gratefully, I am home now, but getting through this “flare up” is no joke.
All you out there with autoimmune immune diseases, all the respect! I guess I’m going to be learning from you in your corner! This is what I’d like to learn from you:
1.) How do you let the hustle go for rest?
2.) Who do you know that writes about autoimmune struggles I can learn from?
Burnout and Why I Hate Resting When Hijacked
My name is Elisa, a changemaker who tends to have a hard time resting.
About six years ago I realized all my world changing activities starting nonprofits, doing good, and serving in ministry had brought me to a place of burnout. I took a year off, revamped my life, and restarted differently.
I thought I was doing good, that I could prevent burnout via all my systems to rest, refill and accountability. They worked for a good five years. But you can’t prevent trauma, family/leadership struggles, and just exhaustion from setting in. The thing that was different, though, was that last year I was able to recognize it before I got too low. I stepped back, found support, and spent a lot of time in healing with God.
Despite growth from these experiences and the value of filling before giving…I still am not good at deep rest. Sometimes I can do it if I plan for it in advance. I’m also not the greatest at releasing expectations. My body has been flirting with death in the last weeks, and it did so a couple years ago, too. Both then and now, sometimes the struggle to accept myself in this condition feels impossible. Usually this is because I don’t want to release expectations, plans, goals, and hopes I have. I fight against my life being hijacked out of the blue. That is fair.
After all, living out our purpose, making a difference in our sweet spots, is GOOD. But seasons change, and often do quickly and unexpectedly. And when they do, we can be dragged along, fighting, striving. Or we can accept the change. Align with the season.
What do you do? How do you rest when unplanned?
I share my story because I know countless difference-makers out there struggle with the same thing. Even for those of us who take “Sabbaths” or have learned to value prioritizing rest, self care, health and spiritual refilling, doesn’t mean we don’t deal with the tension. The tension is real, friends. We can value something and still struggle with it. Both and can be true. And they are.
It’s why we need all the grace on this journey we’re on. Just like I do today, back in the hospital where my annual No Hustle November got real!
When It Is The Time to Receive
The other night I was contacted to see if I would bring a meal and groceries to a refugee family from Afghanistan. I’ve been waiting for the opportunity for awhile. And I couldn’t. Right now I am not the giver. I am the receiver.
For the last few weeks almost every night someone has brought us a meal. Friends are bringing us groceries.
And even though disappointed (because connecting with and helping refugees is something I’m very passionate about), I was able to remind myself some great No Hustle Novemeber truths:
1.) “This isn’t my last opportunity to be there for someone else.”
2.) “Remember what it feels like to receive, because it will make you a much better giver.”
3.) “The season right now is about being grateful you are still alive; that you can still eat dinner with your own family, even if your laying down on a couch.”
Aligning with the season you’re in–not hustling to make a difference–is vital if you’re going to be an everyday world changer.
Do you struggle with receiving?
*Thanks to Rachel who provided this meal from Panda Express!*
No Hustle November
Leadership That Let’s You Rest: #NoHustleVember (Lupus in Pregnancy #3)
#NOHUSTLEVEMBER AND PRODUCTIVITY: PREGNANCY IN LUPUS UPDATE #4
WHY REACHING 20 WEEKS IS A BIG DEAL! LUPUS IN PREGNANCY UPDATE #5
WHERE IN THE STORY? LUPUS IN PREGNANCY UPDATE #6
Poem: I hate This (Lupus and Pregnancy Update #7)
