09/04/2026
I’ve spent a lot of time lately celebrating how far I’ve come since 2021.
The walks. The hikes. The stairs. The movement. The strength. The things that once felt impossible becoming part of my normal life.
And then yesterday happened.
Wednesday, my back and hips were incredibly stiff. My neck and shoulder hurt. I assumed I had just overdone it after the vendor show and the mad dash to tear everything down during that freak rainstorm.
But yesterday, I stood up and felt that familiar sharp, shooting pain down my left leg.
I could barely stand.
My lower back was so stiff and painful that I couldn’t stand completely upright, and putting pressure on my left leg sent pain shooting through me.
And suddenly, it felt a whole lot like 2021 again.
But here’s what I realized:
I’m NOT back in 2021.
Because in 2021, a day like yesterday would have put me in bed. I would have stayed there for days, maybe weeks. I would have felt defeated, and eventually that physical setback would have become a mental one too.
Yesterday was different.
I listened to my body. I slowed WAY down. I used my heating pad. I rested. I didn’t get everything done.
But I still moved.
💚 I made sticker packs.
💚 I got myself downstairs for dinner.
💚 I did bedtime with Zabrina.
💚 I showed up in the ways my body allowed me to.
And THAT is progress too.
Sometimes progress is walking farther.
Sometimes it’s climbing the hill.
Sometimes it’s pushing yourself to do something you never thought you could do.
And sometimes?
Progress is knowing when to let off the gas without convincing yourself that you’ve failed.
One horrible day does not erase years of progress.
One setback does not send you back to the beginning.
Today, I’m moving slower. I’m listening to my body. And I’m reminding myself that healing was never supposed to be a perfectly straight line.
Still moving. Still healing. Still becoming. 🦋
Bad days don’t erase your progress. 💚
