Feeling stuck

The patient had received bad news. I don't know whether he asked for a chaplain or a nurse had offered to call one. It didn't matter much how I got here, what mattered was that I was there.

I have sat with people, more than one person, who has been informed that they will need to make major changes in their lives. One has been told that he has a heart condition, and he need to remove certain stressors from his life. Another finds out that she has diabetes and will need to learn how to eat a more balanced diet and learn to count carbs.

And still another finds out a cancer has been found and life will now be determined by the number of journeys to receive treatment and care. For some it's a conversation when the abstract meets reality and the "I've got a few years left," becomes "There's nothing more we can do." I have written about change and some of the benefits of adjusting to change in the past, but what about those times when we don't want the change that has been forced upon us? The times when we want to dig in our heels and just scream, "Stop! I want everything to stay just like it like it was.

" "I can't move forward I want to stop time." We want to be stuck, not moving forward. Being stuck is not an option, or at least a healthy option in our lives.

Feeling stuck is often a powerful sign and invitation to live differently. It's a journey into the unknown that feels uncomfortable because we don't have it all figured out. And, when we're being honest, we don't like the un.