It’s week two of sharing our 5 Facts That Give Back. 

These aren’t just statistics. The facts we’re sharing come from real people who are living with Periodic Paralysis every day.

Like Monica from Orlando, Florida. She was finally diagnosed properly after over 9 years of being misdiagnosed by doctors all over the country. Yet she still deals with doctors and people not believing her.

Though she has a never-give-up attitude, she knows what it’s like to be laughed out of doctors’ offices, called crazy, and what it feels like when no one understood you at all. How has she pulled through? By creating healthy mental and physical lifestyle habits that keep her mind sharp and her emotional state positive. Now she’s an advocate for others who suffer from the same struggles. Recently she shared with us her philosophy of upholding that mental strength.

What’s her best advice?  To remember that a healthy mindset is the first step to new possibilities.

Here’s what she had to say,

“It’s about creating simple reminders that your mindset can be one of the differences in the quality of your life with PP. How we perceive our situation and limits can be a powerful factor in our quality of life. Realizing we are not our circumstances can help us accept possible truths that we may be struggling with. In my personal experience, I have struggled with losing parts of my life due to PP which many with PP can relate to. We need to remember that just because we can no longer do something we once could, like taking a nice walk with a loved one or be left home alone or a career we held for years, doesn’t mean we are somehow less of who we used to be as a person, just different.

Our abilities may have different limits now and our circumstances might have changed but who we are now doesn’t have to become less than who we used to be. A perfect example of this is our president Linda Feld. I find inspiration in her and what she overcomes every day because she lives her life in a healthy mindset. She is the perfect example of overcoming your body’s physical limits and still living an “active: and fulfilling life.”

“It is healthy to grieve what we have lost but then we must seek out our new strengths and possibilities. Who knows who one will become once challenged to change, you may come to find out you have wings.”

Can you relate to Monica’s story? Or are you still struggling to create a strong mental mindset? Remember, you are not alone. We are here to help.