For years I would walk around in two mental states. Either I was not thinking about my right ankle or I was. If I was not thinking about it, I would walk with more confidence, but with a degree of trepidation and some pain. I would walk focused on the ground and my next step, not able to look up and see towards the future. When I was thinking about my ankle, I knew the next tweak was inevitable. I was about to roll it on something as minor as a pebble or a pine needle or because the wind blew my step off by a minuscule amount. For certain, a self fulfilling prophecy.
Now I walk sure footed. I don’t think about my ankle. The persistent mind worm of the inevitable roll, gone.
What has happened? I have had a bad right ankle since the summer before I left for college. I sprained it so badly playing basketball that it needed to be immobilized in a hard cast. As this came off during my freshman year of college, I did not rehab it appropriately then nor really anytime until April of 2020. That stint proved unsuccessful in the long run when the pain became persistent again in late 2021. I finally went to a specialist who gave me a cortisone shot and re-prescribed rehab. This time within one session I heard a pop when doing an exercise my therapist demonstrated, which was followed by immediate relief. I’m not a doctor, but essentially a tiny bone that usually sits in a tiny groove had been riding on top of the edges of the groove and not in the groove itself.
So many metaphors here! I’m going to go a not so obvious route. I was stubborn for not doing the work to address this ailment. I was complicit in the fixed mindset that I was forever compromised. I also thought that a positive result could arise out of inaction. That said, I believe that the number one reason I allowed this issue to linger is that I had grown so accustomed to what it kept me from, I was scared of the success that could result from a change.
If we focus on the part of the journey before pain forced my hand, I am free to ask you, what are you living with that needs attention and addressing for you to be more complete and productive?
Get out ahead of it. Meditate on a growing pain point. Decide on a plan of action for addressing that pain. Take a step back and address it. And be prepared to reap the benefits once eradicated. This was key for me. I walk without threat of being sidelined for weeks due to another sprain. This more readily keeps me in a growth mindset. I am able to pick my head up during my walks and see what is down the road. Usually this view even within a neighborhood or on a busy Chicago street is exquisite! So, do what you need to do to place one foot in front of the other with confident purpose and see the vibrant path ahead of you!
