Never say never

A lot of things have happened over the last few years which I never thought would be possible. I can think of several events that took place both in the UK and worldwide which certainly seemed to take everyone completely by surprise – those times when everyone thought ‘That’ll never happen’ and then it did.

I never thought I would be diagnosed with Parkinson’s aged 36. Having always been a fairly reserved and private person, I also never thought I’d be writing a blog. And even when I posted my first blog, I never planned to keep blogging. Truth be told, in between blogs, I have often wondered whether the blog I just posted might be my last ever blog. It’s been nearly two years since my first blog in September 2016, and somehow I’ve written 64 blogs with over 11,800 views. I definitely never would have predicted that!

My attitude to unexpected events has changed over the last few years. I try not to think or say ‘such and such will never happen’ or ‘that’s impossible’. Because life has proved that anything can happen. Instead I try to rephrase things – both out loud and in my head – to ‘such and such is unlikely to happen’, so I’m more open to the unexpected events of life.

I also got into a habit of thinking that unexpected events always meant bad news. But upon reflection, many of the unexpected events in my life have actually been very positive. From unexpectedly finding out that my team at work had been shortlisted for an award (I wasn’t even aware we’d been nominated) to having opportunities to spend time with various friends and family members – completely out of the blue. And during my recent holiday, there were lots of completely unexpected happy moments – from the speediest most pleasant experience of going through customs when we arrived – to the beautiful and atmospheric live music (cello and singing) on our sunset cruise – and dancing and laughing the night away without a care in the world. I can’t dance (in fact I think the phrase I used was ‘I don’t dance’) and I usually feel very self-conscious – especially since my movements are now slower and stiffer due to my Parkinson’s – so that was a big deal for me.

Life may throw us into some unexpected situations, but we can learn something from every experience.

When I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s, I never thought there would be any positives to come from my diagnosis. In fact I was scared of what my uncertain future with Parkinson’s would bring. However, the future’s always uncertain for all of us – with or without Parkinson’s. And nearly five years after my diagnosis, here I am today, stronger, more resilient and sharing my experiences through my blogs that I never thought I would be writing … Never say never.

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