{"id":2711,"date":"2015-07-06T10:34:34","date_gmt":"2015-07-06T15:34:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/?p=2711"},"modified":"2016-11-12T18:20:07","modified_gmt":"2016-11-13T00:20:07","slug":"pressing-on","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/","title":{"rendered":"Pressing on"},"content":{"rendered":"

I am on Day 6 of the Whole30<\/a>, and I have to say, \u201cSo far, so good.\u201d Thanks be to God! I have reached a point with my Hashimoto’s<\/a>\u00a0where I am fed up with unexpected weight gain, swollen ankles, and chronic\u00a0fatigue. As in, \u201cI\u2019ll try anything, if I think it might work.\u201d Hence, the Whole30!<\/p>\n

But it took me awhile to get here.<\/p>\n

The first time I attempted the Whole30, I made it to Day 13. I got off track for one day, which turned into weeks and then months. I just couldn\u2019t recommit. I was\u00a0on this inescapable cycle of wanting health and wellness but having little energy and lots of discouragement.\u00a0I geared myself to begin again, and I ate\u00a0super healthy for awhile. But I admit, I was not too keen on giving up my favorite foods. Let\u2019s face it, that\u2019s a lot of work. I had an all-or-nothing attitude, and nothing won every time. This\u00a0led to despair, which usually ended with me trying to feel better via ice cream or chocolate. Then, the whole torturous cycle started over again.<\/p>\n

I asked myself, “Why can’t I do this? How can I strengthen my resolve? Where can\u00a0I find the rest and healing my body so desperately needs, while maintaining my role as mom?”<\/p>\n

You are my hiding place, O Lord\u201d <\/strong><\/em>(Psalm 32:7)<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Through the intercession of Our Blessed Mother, I begged the Lord to untie the tight knots that filled my body, mind and soul. \u201cPlease heal me with the ointment of Your grace and mercy; wrap me in swaddling bandages that protect me from exposure, infection and a fear of being un-healable. Help me to trust You, Jesus,\u201d I prayed.<\/p>\n

As I sat before the Lord in my parish\u2019s Adoration Chapel, I settled into the reality that I was looking at the cross of Hashimoto\u2019s in the wrong light. I thought that if I made progress, the cross would go away. But\u00a0because I wasn’t making progress, I was falling further and further behind.<\/p>\n

I slowly started to realize that\u00a0I needed to look at my cross differently. Perhaps, God was allowing my suffering for reasons I did not fully understand. And maybe the type\u00a0of healing I envisioned wasn\u2019t the type of healing God had in mind for me. Rather than looking for the quickest way out, did I need to endure, settle in and pace myself?<\/p>\n

Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect; but I press on to make it my own, because Jesus Christ has made me His own \u2026\u201d <\/strong><\/em>(Philippians 3:12)<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

For so long, I have responded to Hashimoto\u2019s as a victim. Hashimoto\u2019s \u201cdid\u201d this to me. I didn\u2019t want to pick up my cross, let alone embrace it. I was not pressing on to make it my own; I was running from it and perhaps flat out rejecting it.<\/p>\n

But Jesus made me His own, when He picked up His cross and carried it all the way to Calvary for me. Now was the time to pick up my own (much smaller) cross, and unite it to His.<\/p>\n

Therefore, I tell you, (Sarah), do not be anxious about your life, what you shall eat or what you shall drink, nor about your body \u2026 <\/strong><\/em>(Matthew 6:25)<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

So often, I want to know the \u201chows,\u201d the practical ways to \u201cdo\u201d this or that. But waiting for the perfect formula or for someone to tell me what to do, is only going to keep me on the cycle of being an overwhelmed victim. The right approach to my health will come and is coming, as I learn to live with<\/em> Hashimoto\u2019s. And that brings me to this Whole30. It is my first step in\u00a0making it my own.<\/p>\n

When it comes to suffering or trial, how do you “press on to make it [your] own?” What Scripture passages have given you comfort, strength and\/or encouragement?<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I am on Day 6 of the Whole30, and I have to say, \u201cSo far, so good.\u201d Thanks be to God! I have reached a point with my Hashimoto’s\u00a0where I am fed up with unexpected weight gain, swollen ankles, and chronic\u00a0fatigue. As in, \u201cI\u2019ll try anything, if I think it might work.\u201d Hence, the Whole30! But it took me awhile to get here. The first time I attempted the Whole30, I made it to Day 13. I got off track…<\/p>\n

Read More Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2713,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[3,63,37,27,64],"class_list":["post-2711","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-faith","tag-hashimotos","tag-health-wellness","tag-prayer","tag-suffering"],"yoast_head":"\nPressing on - Sarah Damm<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Pressing on - Sarah Damm\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I am on Day 6 of the Whole30, and I have to say, \u201cSo far, so good.\u201d Thanks be to God! I have reached a point with my Hashimoto’s\u00a0where I am fed up with unexpected weight gain, swollen ankles, and chronic\u00a0fatigue. As in, \u201cI\u2019ll try anything, if I think it might work.\u201d Hence, the Whole30! But it took me awhile to get here. The first time I attempted the Whole30, I made it to Day 13. I got off track... Read More Read More\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Sarah Damm\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2015-07-06T15:34:34+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2016-11-13T00:20:07+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/strawberry-scripture.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"3318\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"2212\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Sarah\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@sarahcdamm\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@sarahcdamm\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Sarah\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Sarah\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b12a17862a6b5fc5001463a8f6b78c0a\"},\"headline\":\"Pressing on\",\"datePublished\":\"2015-07-06T15:34:34+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2016-11-13T00:20:07+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/\"},\"wordCount\":666,\"commentCount\":9,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b12a17862a6b5fc5001463a8f6b78c0a\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/strawberry-scripture.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"faith\",\"Hashimoto's\",\"health & wellness\",\"prayer\",\"suffering\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/\",\"url\":\"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/\",\"name\":\"Pressing on - Sarah Damm\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/strawberry-scripture.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2015-07-06T15:34:34+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2016-11-13T00:20:07+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/strawberry-scripture.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/strawberry-scripture.jpg\",\"width\":3318,\"height\":2212,\"caption\":\"Strawberries. Organic Berries Closeup. Ripe Strawberry In The Fruit Garden Old Wooden Bowl Filled With Succulent Juicy Fresh Ripe Red Strawberries On An Old Birch Stump. Toned Image\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Pressing on\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/\",\"name\":\"Sarah Damm\",\"description\":\"Catholic. Wife. Mother. Writer.\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b12a17862a6b5fc5001463a8f6b78c0a\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":[\"Person\",\"Organization\"],\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b12a17862a6b5fc5001463a8f6b78c0a\",\"name\":\"Sarah\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/94627392_1841253572690243_2845496901107712000_o.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/94627392_1841253572690243_2845496901107712000_o.jpg\",\"width\":1152,\"height\":1152,\"caption\":\"Sarah\"},\"logo\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Pressing on - Sarah Damm","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Pressing on - Sarah Damm","og_description":"I am on Day 6 of the Whole30, and I have to say, \u201cSo far, so good.\u201d Thanks be to God! I have reached a point with my Hashimoto’s\u00a0where I am fed up with unexpected weight gain, swollen ankles, and chronic\u00a0fatigue. As in, \u201cI\u2019ll try anything, if I think it might work.\u201d Hence, the Whole30! But it took me awhile to get here. The first time I attempted the Whole30, I made it to Day 13. I got off track... Read More Read More","og_url":"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/","og_site_name":"Sarah Damm","article_published_time":"2015-07-06T15:34:34+00:00","article_modified_time":"2016-11-13T00:20:07+00:00","og_image":[{"width":3318,"height":2212,"url":"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/strawberry-scripture.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Sarah","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@sarahcdamm","twitter_site":"@sarahcdamm","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Sarah","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/"},"author":{"name":"Sarah","@id":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b12a17862a6b5fc5001463a8f6b78c0a"},"headline":"Pressing on","datePublished":"2015-07-06T15:34:34+00:00","dateModified":"2016-11-13T00:20:07+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/"},"wordCount":666,"commentCount":9,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b12a17862a6b5fc5001463a8f6b78c0a"},"image":{"@id":"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/strawberry-scripture.jpg","keywords":["faith","Hashimoto's","health & wellness","prayer","suffering"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/","url":"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/","name":"Pressing on - Sarah Damm","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/strawberry-scripture.jpg","datePublished":"2015-07-06T15:34:34+00:00","dateModified":"2016-11-13T00:20:07+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/strawberry-scripture.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/strawberry-scripture.jpg","width":3318,"height":2212,"caption":"Strawberries. Organic Berries Closeup. Ripe Strawberry In The Fruit Garden Old Wooden Bowl Filled With Succulent Juicy Fresh Ripe Red Strawberries On An Old Birch Stump. Toned Image"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"http:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/2015\/07\/06\/pressing-on\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Pressing on"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/","name":"Sarah Damm","description":"Catholic. Wife. Mother. Writer.","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b12a17862a6b5fc5001463a8f6b78c0a"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":["Person","Organization"],"@id":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b12a17862a6b5fc5001463a8f6b78c0a","name":"Sarah","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/94627392_1841253572690243_2845496901107712000_o.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/94627392_1841253572690243_2845496901107712000_o.jpg","width":1152,"height":1152,"caption":"Sarah"},"logo":{"@id":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/sarahdamm.com"]}]}},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/strawberry-scripture.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p86xr0-HJ","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2711","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2711"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2711\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3813,"href":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2711\/revisions\/3813"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2713"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2711"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2711"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sarahdamm.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2711"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}