COVID Gave Me The Push I Needed

Having cancer and living during the COVID-19 pandemic has been quite a roller coaster. Cancer already makes you immunocompromised and then there was COVID to worry about. In my case, the doctor didn’t even want me to get the vaccine until further testing had been done. I was on lockdown from my job, my friends, and even my family until they got vaccinated. Luckily all my daughters, Crystal included, were able to get vaccinated pretty quickly. It has been a crazy year and I’m glad it’s coming to an end.

COVID was not only scary, but it was also heartbreaking. The thing is, there are things we can take away from this happening. This is what COVID has taught me.

Take care of yourself

So many people that were badly affected by COVID had other health issues. Some were unavoidable, but some were conditions brought on by lifestyle choices. We always have to go back to what our mothers taught us - eat right, sleep for 8 hours each night, and move. Exercise is important. Although my mother never told me to exercise, we had to go out and play if it was nice out. And that was my exercise - lol.

When we were on lockdown, it was hard to see our families. We didn’t want to give them COVID or get it from them. It was very isolating and helped me to remember just how important family is.

Life is short

Make those changes you need to make. For me, retiring was the thing I needed to do. My job was not satisfying any longer and it was time to move on. COVID pushed me to make the move. Life is short, we don’t know what tomorrow has in store for us, but we have today. I decided it was time to start enjoying what I have right now. Cancer has already opened our eyes wide to this and COVID drove the point home. My husband and I have wanted to travel since we met. Now that we are both retired, We will be living our dream. I retired a bit earlier than I planned, but it was the right decision. We aren’t promised tomorrow, but we can enjoy today and decided it was time.

None of us know what the future will hold. Having a global pandemic hit the world has shown me how scary the future can be. I tell people all the time to enjoy what they can from each day. Now it’s time to live that message myself. I’ve been taking better care of myself, exercising daily, and trying to be grateful for everything I have. So many people have lost loved ones or suffered long-term effects from this pandemic. I’m so happy my family came through the pandemic and are doing well. I know how lucky we are. I’m glad we are finally getting a handle on the disease, but I’m also glad it pushed me to make a tough decision and a decision I needed to make. So, ready or not, retirement - here I come.

Wishing you health & happiness.