“If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.” ~Dalai Lama In my mid-thirties, my active and adventuresome life as a broadcast journalist collapsed.
It began with a trauma, followed by flu-like symptoms that stuck around for thirteen years. Almost overnight, I lost the pep to walk around the block, much less file reports for the evening news.
A battery of doctors diagnosed me with chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), among other diagnoses. They said I’d have to live this way since there was no reliable cure.
I became one of the medical mysteries I used to cover. Needless to say, I was terrified and grief-stricken. To add insult to illness, I beat myself up for ‘failing’ to get well.