Laina Laughing: Getting To Know Yourself Beyond Illness - Part 4

It’s easy to lose ourselves in our various illnesses. So it’s important to be reminded from time to time that you are a person, not an illness. You have a personality, interests, likes, dislikes, opinions, obligations, and responsibilities. So every now and then I plan to provide some questions that are designed to help us get reacquainted with ourselves gradually. (You can see part one – for the external basics and part 2 for your food preferences and abilities.)

Keep in mind:

Periodically you may want to change your answers as you know yourself better or your tastes change. That is a good thing.

Remember that most of these questions have no right or wrong answer. This is just about getting to know yourself so that you can make better choices and understand why you do certain things. It is also good for helping us see the goon in us, not just the bad.

Me – Entertained:

1. What kind of music do I like?

2. What is my favorite song (with words)? What is my favorite piece of music (no words, just instruments)?

3. How often do I get to listen to music?

4. What are my top 20 favorite movies?

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5. Who are my top five favorite actors (men)?

6. Who are my top five favorite actresses?

7. Do I like to read? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

8. What are the titles and authors of my favorite books?

9. Do I read mostly fiction or non-fiction?

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10. What sort of magazines do I enjoy reading?

11. Has my illness affected my ability to read? If so, how?

12. Is there anything I can do to continue enjoying this activity? (Listen to books on CD, cassette, or computer; ask someone to read to me; buy a magnifying glass; buy a prop or lap desk so you don’t have to hold the books; read online or on your phone or kindle, etc…)

13. What kind of games do I enjoy?

14. What are the names of my five favorite TV shows?

Extra credit: Keep track of your answers for question 12. See what you can do to continue enjoying this activity. Did you know that reading reduces stress by 68%? That's more than listening to music, taking a walk, or drinking a cup of tea! It's true, I read it on Pinterest! (That was a joke. A joke I tell you.)

I am doing a series of lists like this – some playful, light, or superficial, some a little more introspective but all along the lines of getting to know yourself again. I am also filling them out as we go on. I’m printing them out, writing the answers, and putting them in a binder. I think I’ll title it “Laina – The Book.”

Do you have anything to add or share? Please comment!

Picture Credit

photo credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/72006245@N05/6506066531/">Raoul Luoar</a> via <a href="http://photopin.com">photopin</a> <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/">cc</a>