Bravo, Chris! I love your post and all of your wise, strong answers. I love your "next day" rule and your emphasis on rest, and that your disease has given you self-confidence that you didn't have before. I wonder if you've always had your sense of humor, or if that is new as well? I also love your perspective of even though your disease is rare, having a disease is not rare. Excellent idea to answer reader's questions - it gives us more insight into you and also provides great advice for our own struggles, whatever they may be. Thank you so much, and well done!!
Chris, I absolutely love Hello Adversity. It always gives me a boost when I need it, and you provide such practical, applicable advice with warmth and humor. Thank you!
Thank you for your kind answers. This is a note to remind you that interactions with you MATTER! Connecting is what helps so very much to all of us who are isolated (for various reasons) .
Firstly thanks for answering my question Chris. I love the next day concept. I'll be stealing this going forward. And "you can't fool your body" so true. Your body always knows the truth before your brain catches up.
Everyone's questions were great, very thought provoking, I look forward to your next AMA.
Chris, thank you so much for sharing this, and I think your framework is so helpful for deciding when to share certain topics. I also am an introvert actually so this was very relatable. Can’t wait to check out the other answers you gave!! Hope you Feel better also.
Awesome answers to these questions Chris, despite the fact that you were as sick as a dog 😉 100% on the :”next day” rule. I definitely do that a lot myself - i find myself sleeping real early when I feel negative, in the hopes the next morning gives me more strength. Really like the “remember your best moments” as an on-the-spot counterbalance, might use that next time. Won’t go into every answer you provided - and maybe you’ve answered this previously too - but would you say your insightfulness is something that was helped by the disease? Or something that was naturally part of who you were, and ultimately helped you with making sense of your disease? - sorta chicken or egg so to speak.
I'm addressing all your comments in one - thank you! To answer your question, I'd say my insightfulness came from my disease. I don't recall having this level of wisdom beforehand, although I never had a chance to show it, so maybe I did.
By the way, hope you enjoyed answering the Uconn question as much as I enjoyed asking it haha Wow, its quite amazing to hear how college sports is such a huge thing in America for people living in the towns. Sucks to hear about your hockey team, hopefully a new team makes it way back to Connecticut. Re: Geno, that’s fair. They’ve been dealt with brutal injuries last few years. True, one last hurrah to go out on top. Hey, can’t fault him for that, but yeah also agree more parity is a great thing!
There’s so much good wisdom here, Chris! And I love how you delivered it all with humor. (“Never. Not once.” made me chuckle. I’m in the same boat as you there!!)
As a fellow catastrophizer, that's a great tip to write down everything you think might happen/fear and then go back and look to see which ones actually happened. My brain has the habit of defaulting to the idea that nothing ever works out which is catastrophizing in itself, so would be great to have some actual written evidence that that wasn't the case. Lots of great advice and tips in this!
Incredibly insightful answers to a stellar bunch of questions. So many great nuggets of wisdom you’ve shared here Chris, thank you for your openness and generosity!
In particular, I appreciate your response to my question and agree wholeheartedly with everything you said. Everyone has aspects of their lives that they consider ‘unfair’. On the flip side, we all have things that other people would give anything to have. Irrespective of whether it’s fair or not, it doesn’t change reality of our situation. There are so many things in life we can’t control. What we can control is how we choose to face adversity and how we choose to show up for life each and every day.
Gosh, I’m blown away by the quality of your answers here Chris (and indeed the quality of the questions). There’s so much to digest written in such an accessible, honest way. I’ve not started my writing life on Substack yet but your style is definitely one I like as a model.
I love the reminder to break big tasks down into smaller ones (which I often forget to do and then feel overwhelmed - hello, tax declaration!) and I absolutely love your catastrophe “diary”.
The thing I need regular reminders of (I’ve had Chronic Fatigue Syndrome for nearly 30 years) is that no matter what boulder is in my path today, I can choose my response to it. “The last of the human freedoms” as Viktor Frankl put it.
Great piece Chris. I really liked the ‘next day’ rule and the caveats within. Learning to embrace the negative thoughts and not push them away has been a big learning point for me too. And thank you for linking to your post on ‘comparisons’, super helpful too 💕
I especially liked your 'going with the flow' thoughts about good and bad days, letting the difficult ones happen and seeing what tomorrow brings. A new slate every day.I think it helps when life is difficult.
I love the writing the list of compliments - I did that in the back of my journal once too and would read it over and over again. Now I’ve done it with writing compliments to help keep me company when it gets tricky. As well as enjoying the whole read and the way you approach your audience, writing and delivery, I loved the “no.never.” Response to catastrophising😆😂
Bravo, Chris! I love your post and all of your wise, strong answers. I love your "next day" rule and your emphasis on rest, and that your disease has given you self-confidence that you didn't have before. I wonder if you've always had your sense of humor, or if that is new as well? I also love your perspective of even though your disease is rare, having a disease is not rare. Excellent idea to answer reader's questions - it gives us more insight into you and also provides great advice for our own struggles, whatever they may be. Thank you so much, and well done!!
Thanks Cherie! My sense of humor predates my disease, but I lost it for a bit. Then I gained it back, but it was a process. I wrote about my journey here: https://helloadversity.substack.com/p/learning-to-laugh-again
Thanks, Chris! I had read that post previously, but had forgotten, and enjoyed it even more this time! I'm so glad you got your laugh back!!
Chris, I absolutely love Hello Adversity. It always gives me a boost when I need it, and you provide such practical, applicable advice with warmth and humor. Thank you!
Same! Hes not only a great writer but has a real skill for all he shares and the way it is delivered.
Thanks Amber 😀
Thanks Jessica!!
Thank you for your kind answers. This is a note to remind you that interactions with you MATTER! Connecting is what helps so very much to all of us who are isolated (for various reasons) .
Thanks Teyani! 😀
Firstly thanks for answering my question Chris. I love the next day concept. I'll be stealing this going forward. And "you can't fool your body" so true. Your body always knows the truth before your brain catches up.
Everyone's questions were great, very thought provoking, I look forward to your next AMA.
Thanks Vivienne! I really appreciated your question. 😀
Some really superb advice here. Thanks for sharing it so candidly and hope you're feeling better soon - everyone is sick this summer it seems!
Thanks Christine! I'm starting to feel better thankfully.
I love the "next day" philosophy... Thank you for sharing this, Chris.
Thanks Noha 😀
Chris, thank you so much for sharing this, and I think your framework is so helpful for deciding when to share certain topics. I also am an introvert actually so this was very relatable. Can’t wait to check out the other answers you gave!! Hope you Feel better also.
Thanks Anna! I'm feeling better now 😀
Sage. xo
Awesome answers to these questions Chris, despite the fact that you were as sick as a dog 😉 100% on the :”next day” rule. I definitely do that a lot myself - i find myself sleeping real early when I feel negative, in the hopes the next morning gives me more strength. Really like the “remember your best moments” as an on-the-spot counterbalance, might use that next time. Won’t go into every answer you provided - and maybe you’ve answered this previously too - but would you say your insightfulness is something that was helped by the disease? Or something that was naturally part of who you were, and ultimately helped you with making sense of your disease? - sorta chicken or egg so to speak.
I'm addressing all your comments in one - thank you! To answer your question, I'd say my insightfulness came from my disease. I don't recall having this level of wisdom beforehand, although I never had a chance to show it, so maybe I did.
Very true - never thought of it that way. Not necessarily a skill you gain, but something you learned to access or find. I dig that.
By the way, hope you enjoyed answering the Uconn question as much as I enjoyed asking it haha Wow, its quite amazing to hear how college sports is such a huge thing in America for people living in the towns. Sucks to hear about your hockey team, hopefully a new team makes it way back to Connecticut. Re: Geno, that’s fair. They’ve been dealt with brutal injuries last few years. True, one last hurrah to go out on top. Hey, can’t fault him for that, but yeah also agree more parity is a great thing!
Last but not least, if you ever do pick up French as a language, and would like some practice, give me a holler 🤙🏻
There’s so much good wisdom here, Chris! And I love how you delivered it all with humor. (“Never. Not once.” made me chuckle. I’m in the same boat as you there!!)
😀 Thanks Katie!
As a fellow catastrophizer, that's a great tip to write down everything you think might happen/fear and then go back and look to see which ones actually happened. My brain has the habit of defaulting to the idea that nothing ever works out which is catastrophizing in itself, so would be great to have some actual written evidence that that wasn't the case. Lots of great advice and tips in this!
Thanks Jackie!
Incredibly insightful answers to a stellar bunch of questions. So many great nuggets of wisdom you’ve shared here Chris, thank you for your openness and generosity!
In particular, I appreciate your response to my question and agree wholeheartedly with everything you said. Everyone has aspects of their lives that they consider ‘unfair’. On the flip side, we all have things that other people would give anything to have. Irrespective of whether it’s fair or not, it doesn’t change reality of our situation. There are so many things in life we can’t control. What we can control is how we choose to face adversity and how we choose to show up for life each and every day.
I’ll be saving and re-reading this post for sure.
Thanks Ruhie! As I wrote it I was thinking about your family's situation too. I certainly understand where the fair/unfair thought comes from.
Gosh, I’m blown away by the quality of your answers here Chris (and indeed the quality of the questions). There’s so much to digest written in such an accessible, honest way. I’ve not started my writing life on Substack yet but your style is definitely one I like as a model.
I love the reminder to break big tasks down into smaller ones (which I often forget to do and then feel overwhelmed - hello, tax declaration!) and I absolutely love your catastrophe “diary”.
The thing I need regular reminders of (I’ve had Chronic Fatigue Syndrome for nearly 30 years) is that no matter what boulder is in my path today, I can choose my response to it. “The last of the human freedoms” as Viktor Frankl put it.
Thanks Chris ❤️
Thanks so much Peter! Oh gosh when it comes to taxes, I violate my own advice! Just the thought of it gets me overwhelmed. 😂
Great piece Chris. I really liked the ‘next day’ rule and the caveats within. Learning to embrace the negative thoughts and not push them away has been a big learning point for me too. And thank you for linking to your post on ‘comparisons’, super helpful too 💕
Thanks so much Jane! 🙏
Chris, wonderful advice. Quite inspiring!
I especially liked your 'going with the flow' thoughts about good and bad days, letting the difficult ones happen and seeing what tomorrow brings. A new slate every day.I think it helps when life is difficult.
You write so well.
Lessons for life for all of us. Thank you.
Thank you! I really appreciate your comment.
I love the writing the list of compliments - I did that in the back of my journal once too and would read it over and over again. Now I’ve done it with writing compliments to help keep me company when it gets tricky. As well as enjoying the whole read and the way you approach your audience, writing and delivery, I loved the “no.never.” Response to catastrophising😆😂
I put that in last minute so I'm glad you liked it 😀