I’m reading a book called Switch by Chip & Dan Heath. In the book it talks about if you have too many choices in life you can become paralyzed. When given a smaller amount of choices, you are more able to quickly make a decision. You are able to focus. The opposite is true, as well. The more choices we are given does not always produce the freedom we would think might come with those choices. In fact, we tend to shut down with too many options before us. We do not know how to move forward, so we just turn to the “old standby” and hit replay. In other words, we continue to do what we’ve always done. Nothing in our lives change.

Since I’ve been on my diabetes soapbox for a few posts now, I’m going to stick with what I’ve always done! My doctors have told me all the basic stuff most people with diabetes have told me. They have basically said what most of my books have said, too.  I’m told to eat better, to exercise, to watch my blood sugars, to rest, to not stress, to have routine blood work and make sure I take care of my feet! Doesn’t this all sound great? Doesn’t this sound like common sense?

Well, it is, until my child has a bad dream and I don’t sleep well. It’s great until my blood sugar is too low and I can’t exercise. All well and good until I smell the brownies. All fine until I realize I was so busy cooking dinner and then eating it that I completely forgot to take my insulin. I don’t know about the rest of you, but my life does not play out like a book. It’s not at all predictable. There seems to be something happening that was not expected on my calendar multiple times a week and sometimes multiple times a day. As you might imagine, this produces some extra stress in my life that does not go along with my blood sugar.

What does this have to do with “too many choices”? Well, it hit me the other day that I am the paralyzed person. I’ve been presented with so many ways of how to better my diabetes that I am debilitated. I’m so overwhelmed with the thought of where do I go from here that I don’t feel I can move forward. I already check my blood sugars 5-6 times a day. For the most part, I do take my insulin as needed. I’m doing better with my eating and exercise. But, with so many areas to focus upon, I can tend to get sidetracked. So, lately I’ve been going back to the basics. It’s okay if I fail one day, at least I’m trying. I’m starting to give myself credit for trying. I’m making small changes a little at a time instead of solving the world’s problems all at once.

More than my diabetes, though, the real question for me is in what other areas of my life am I just hitting the replay button. I’ve been challenged by several circumstances lately and I have felt very uncomfortable dealing with them. I definitely wanted to do the “old standby”, but knew in my gut I had to move forward. In these particular circumstances it all came back to focus. When I was presenting myself with the different possibilities and possible solutions, I was paralyzed. It wasn’t until I remembered my focus of “God” that I realized it was all black and white. Too many choices in life, but ultimately there is only one choice to make: will I live for God? To clarify, will my very actions and daily living be God lived out before others?

You might assume that this was an easy answer for me. I would have assumed that, as well, but I still struggled. I resisted. I drug my feet. I was sick. I procrastinated. I made the decision cloudy with the many scenarios I created in my head. But God proved Himself to me even in my indecision. He reminded me I made my choice to follow Him many years ago. I knew what was right and what had to be done. So, I asked for forgiveness for my lack of faith and did what needed to be done. I released my situation to His outcome and not mine. I made my choice to follow God and let go of the “too many choices” that were trying to swallow me up! Let me just say, my stress level has been much better.

© 2012 Susan M. Sims

Image courtesy of artur84 at freedigitalphotos.net

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