Caregiving / The lesson I learned from the knot in my neck.

The lesson from the knot in my neck.

During the last year of caregiving for my husband who had early onset Alzheimer’s, I had a chronic knot in my neck and the pain and stiffness would spread to my shoulder and spine, always on the same side, every day.

Anything I tried to loosen it up, was always temporary…massage, chiropractic, deep tissue work, immersion tank, exercise, sleeping, hydration… It was just always there.

The first time I got away for a couple days of respite, I woke up and the knot was just gone. I thought maybe I had slept better, maybe it was just my pillows at home. Driving, as I got closer to home the knot returned, as if on cue.

And I realized that I was doing it to myself, by how I handled the stress of caregiving. I was basically carrying around a stress knot. I joked with my chiropractor, Dr. Leon, that I needed to learn to carry my stress in a different place and he said, ‘how about outside your body.’ 🙂

What a concept. I started to visualize what that would be like. Because, we know that inflammation is a necessary part of how our body works to fix things, but chronic inflammation can become detrimental and can do permanent damage.

Just that awareness has been life changing. If I start to react to a stressful situation, I still feel it immediately in that same part of my neck and shoulder and I get a burning sensation along my spine.

Stress is inevitable. How you respond to and carry it or if you carry it, is a choice. And, you can change that behavior.

And, I learned that lesson, during the most difficult part of my life…so far.