Celebrating 70 years
Recently I celebrated my 70th birthday, a 5 hour party with almost 50 of my family and friends, and at the same time we celebrated my new lease of life.
This time 2 years ago I was confined to bed for 23 hours a day with ME/CFS, needed full personal and household help, and was being assessed for Rest Home care.
I’d had this illness for 26 years, had been housebound for 17 and bedbound for 10½ of those years. As well as feeling ill, I struggled with the terrible isolation, my life felt worse than being in prison. This was when my daughter Debbie came back restored to health after being trained in the Lightning Process, and I decided to look into it for myself. I contacted Ian Cleary and he arranged to come to train me in my own home in Oamaru next time he was in New Zealand.
In May 2010 a friend joined me for the 3 day training, and from the first day it has felt like a miracle. From being in bed 23 hours the day before, the first day of training I was up for a full 12 hours and sat through 7½ hours of teaching. The next day was the same, plus a walk along the street past three properties and back, followed by a short trip in Ian’s car, likewise the 3rd day, finishing up with extra people for a meal. I couldn’t have even considered doing any of those things previously. By the 6th day I was able to completely shower myself standing up for the first time in about 12 years.
With my doctor’s permission I stopped taking most of my medication and supplements right away, including some that I had needed every day; and other medication I came off more gradually. Now all I take is for my blood pressure, and even that has been reduced as my BP has come down.
The outside world was very different 17 years on. I had to learn how to use an Eftpos card, and how to judge the speed of traffic in order to cross a street. After a month I went to a supermarket, and after 3 months went right into town, and visited my doctor’s surgery for the first time in 17 years. I steadily increased my activities and within 6 months was walking for 30 minutes each day, cooking all my meals and doing my own housework, including washing my car that I had bought and started driving within 5 months of the training! I was out and about, attending church, choosing my own library books, doing my own shopping — and enjoyed ending the year hosting my family for a normal Christmas day – in other words, living an almost ‘normal’ life.
2011 was another amazing year. The best thing was being able to join in family gatherings, including my sister’s 80th birthday and my granddaughter’s 21st party. What joy spending more time with family, getting to know my grandchildren better, being able to play with the little ones down on the floor. How wonderful to be making new friends, visiting old ones, and astounding health professionals and acquaintances alike. I’ve been the 3 hour journey to Christchurch 3 times, driving myself the last 2 times, and staying with family. Driving across and around the city, shopping in the city malls, many experiences I would not have anticipated a couple of years ago. I even felt 2 or 3 good earthquakes! I now walk for up to an hour most days, and have been seeing a physiotherapist for exercises to strengthen my back. I’ve had the joy of watching 2 young people who heard about the Lightning Process because of Debbie’s and my success, come back restored from a recent training in Christchurch.
2012 has started off well, with my birthday party where I was on the go most of the time and was able to speak into a microphone with confidence for the first time ever. Then 3 days later my daughter took me the 1½ hours to Dunedin and back shopping for the first time, a long day out. I even found the confidence to ride on escalators for the first time! Later in February I’m driving to Christchurch again, and from there flying to the North Island to spend time with my daughter and her husband.
It is now 20 months since I completed the LP training. I didn’t just get my life back, but have a completely new life, a life I love! From the first day I no longer had ME/CFS, and have not looked back, in fact it’s difficult to remember that other life.
The journey has not always been straightforward, but the 2 or 3 times I have faced problems, Ian has responded quickly and been on the end of the phone to offer his helpful advice in order for me to find the way through. My physical progress has been dramatic, but can still be improved because of the extended length of time my muscles were out of action. However I’m leading a quite normal life for someone of my age, and doing more than some of my friends are able to. I would never hesitate to recommend the Lightning Process to anyone facing whatever issues that it could help, and endorsing Ian as a very supportive and professional Practitioner. Most of all I give thanks to God for leading me to do the LP training, for his strength and help to succeed, and I look forward to all that he has for me to experience and do in the future.