When Things Just Don’t Go Your Way By Dr. Michael Brooks

Have you ever planned a trip that wasn’t supposed to be a bad in any way? You had everything covered. The right people were going to watch your house take care of your pets. You had people who were going to take out the trash, cut your grass. This trip was a get go from the start. Nothing could ruin it because you planned well ahead in advance. Then the call came, your boss said that you were needed in the office and he couldn’t afford to let you leave on your trip. The company’s product line was in jeopardy. You were the only one who could fix this problem. The unexpected happened and was out of your control. Have you had days like that?

I’ve had many clients share that they get overly stressed when thing don’t go their way. The kids get sick when they have an evening planned out with their spouse or friends. You get stuck in traffic and have to be at an appointment and you wonder if it’s too late still to go your meeting. An unexpected auto repair causes you to forgo a treat that you had planned to buy yourself. How do you deal with these unplanned kinds of circumstances? Do you bury your head in the sand, or do you blast the people in your life and let them get the brunt of your disappointment? I think it’s important to have alternate plans just in case your plans fail to materialize. If you’re supposed to be at an important meeting what is an alternative route to take just in case there is a road closure? Do you plan in advance for things out of your control. If you don’t, I think it’s best that you do and know that you have all your bases covered.

If you need a baby sitter do you have someone you can trust be next in line if your first choice bails on you. I had a client who was supposed to go to a very important dinner with her boss and management team. Her aunt Lynn would always be the sitter she could count on and never worried about her not being able to make it. The time she was needed she had the flu and my client was frustrated. My client had to miss her dinner meeting and missed out on a lot of important discussions.

If you’re having marriage problems, do you think about getting help or waiting at the last minute to get help and when it’s too late? In relationships you shouldn’t wait till the last minute. What usually happens is that the relationship fails. When you notice problems are growing then deal with it immediately. I like to compare marriage problems to when your check engine red light comes on. For most of us we seek help immediately and get the advice of our mechanic to get the problem with the engine diagnosed and repaired. You can’t have the attitude “that things aren’t going my way” and do nothing about it!

Plan on getting the necessary help needed in repairing your relationships. It’s important to work on your marriage or relationships with family and friends. I’ve heard so many people share the regrets of not taking the initial steps in making things right between a broken relationship. Many people pass on and the repairing and restoring of a relationship is lost forever. I had a former friend of mine wanting to contact me last year in the spring. The call came from a friend of mine asking if I could give this former friend of mine a call. We hadn’t spoken in nearly 25 years and my buddy shared that John had an aggressive form of bladder cancer. Bruce gave me the number and without hesitation I called John. We spoke briefly and started to reconnect with frequent phone calls. John and I reminisced about the issues he had with me and several others. Looking back now the problem was started by someone who gossiped about John and he thought it was from our group. When John found out who it was he wanted to reconnect with me. Over the years I reached out to John with no luck.

Now that he was dying from cancer he wanted to make things right. He passed away after 2 months of reconnecting with me. His wife and son were thrilled that John and I talked things out and things were made right between us. This is what I’m suggesting, if things don’t go your way, have an alternate game plan in your relationships, businesses, and personal agendas. Things don’t get better unless someone makes an effort to make things happen. That needs to be you. In closing, make sure that you plan out major events with alternative back up plans. Leave out no details and plan accordingly. If you need help in making things right in your relationships give Dr. Mike a call at 303.456.0555.

Do you need help in resolving issues in your life that are troublesome and will not go away? Do you need to start making changes in some of your relationships and don’t know how? Do you need direction in next steps for resolving conflicts in your marriage? If you answered yes to any of these questions give Dr. Mike a call he can help you. In addition, online/phone/Skype Counseling and Life Coaching is affordable, accessible, anonymous, and available by appointment, from the privacy of your own home. Avoid the travel and time it takes to get my office. Since you never have to leave the comfort of your own home to meet with me, your anonymity and privacy is completely secured.

Well, this is my first article in a few weeks. I had major back surgery 
last week. That operation was something else, and believe me, I am glad that I had it done. I am one for taking care of health problems before they become a serious problem. Back pain can take you out of action real quick and for expended periods of time. How many friends do you personally know had bad hips and backs and you would hear them complain about all their pain?

My hip pain started last year, would ache for several hours, then when I
sat down and rested it would get better over a few hours. This went on for several months. Finally, I had enough of this and went and saw my primary care physician. He referred me to a hip surgeon. After receiving an MRI of the hip, I met with the hip surgeon and he said that, the hip looks fine, I was then referred to another hip surgeon to have a better look at the MRI.

He concluded that the MRI was indeed good, except for a little 
arthritis. I could live with that. So, he ordered an MRI of the low back. The insurance company said, we need 6 weeks of PT before they would approve another MRI on my low back.

Believe it or not the PT made things so bad that I could hardly walk after each PT session. I screamed inside from the pain of each  and every step walking back from PT to my truck. The Physical therapist said, “Mike, no more PT for you!” The insurance company finally agreed for the back MRI.

I went in and had it done on a Tuesday morning. As I was being taken off the MRI table, the tech walked over to me and asked if I was going to see the surgeon right  away that day. I said No, I had no plans to, then she said, are you seeing him  in the afternoon. I said no, I was thinking that I had a hip problem.

She said  “son, you don’t have a hip problem, but a major back
problem, and that I would  get a phone call by the time I get home by a surgeon. She was right on, the call came as I was eating lunch at home. The gal on the phone, said we need you to come in right away. I said OK, when, she said right away.

I was in the next day, the orthopedic surgeon said that my
back  was really damaged, I had a L-3, L-4, crushed nerve and a stress fracture of L-4 and a 8 Cm crushed  nerve. So, we scheduled surgery a few days later and the rest is history.

I am  glad that I had the surgery, its been slow healing, and rehab will
take its  time. I see some great pain relief, and I am looking forward to
that. In a few  months, I will be doing the things I used to do. But, what I have I learned during this time, that would be listen to my body! If its hurting, then we need to get a visit into the doctor.

My point for another Life Coaching article about your health  and getting
things fixed was to look out for each of you. I was at a great  hospital, and the staff was great. If you don’t take of health  issues now, they will get worse, that I can promise you! My tips for this week, if you have something wrong with you, something does not feel right, GO SEE YOUR DOCTOR!!

The problem will not go away, and probably can be fixed and taken care of pretty easily. Call me and lets talk, lets look at your options, I want to help you through the process, its not scary if all the cards on the table. The unknown is what fears most people with health issues. It scared me, but I knew that I had to have the facts, and what all my options were.

That’s where I can help you. If you need someone who will go the distance with you, talk you through the process, help you understand your options, we should talk. There are great Doc’s out there that can help you and really do care about you. Please call me and we can talk this over. I would be more then happy to sit down with a family setting, or as a group from church. We are all in this together, we are family, call me if you have any questions. United we stand for our health, don’t back away, what you do know may save your life in the future!

Ask yourself these questions:

·  Do I need help in setting my health goals?

·  Do I need to get out bad healthy habits that may hurt me?

·  Am I in trouble with my doctor, because I am not listening to his/her advice?

·  Is my life upside down because I have no means of support from friends and family, all they hear me do is complain about my health?

If you have asked yourself any of these questions, you can contact Dr. Mike for help in setting up boundaries for yourself. Get back on the road to recovery!

If you would like some help in setting up boundaries in your life, or if the relationship that you’re in is not going well, you can contact Dr. Mike at 303.456.0555, Life Coaching is done over the phone, so there is no reason to leave your home or office.

How does Life Coaching work? You’ll meet once a week, by phone, for a one-on-one conference, usually 45 minutes a session. In each phone conference you’ll plan and review, together, each of your “Focus Goals” and action areas. In each session, you’ll also receive support and guidance in creating the right attitudes and motivation in the area’s that you want to work on most. In addition to the weekly phone conferences, you’ll also communicate by e-mail, so you’ll have help and support throughout the week.

If you need more information about the Professional Accountability Partner Program, call 303.456.0555 or go to contact Mike link to set up a free consultation appointment. Dr. Mike’s website is www.applicablecoaching.com all calls are confidential and your privacy is protected. Check out Mike’s blog at: https://applicablecoaching.com/blog/ I always welcome your thoughts and comments on today’s coaching article. Mike is also available for speaking engagements.

While I was at the Tanner Gun show in Denver today, I walked several isles. I was really happy to see hundreds of people looking around at the various displays and tables that had all kinds of great deals. I am a people watcher for sure and enjoy watching the bartering going on between sellers and buyers. I would stop and watch, listen to what was being said.

I walked just about every row at the show. My left hip started to ache and bother me, so I headed to the food court. I saw a table open up with a few chairs, so I limped over and sat down. I was really starting to hurt. The pain intensified so much that I could hardly sit at all. My friends finally showed up later. I squirmed, moved from side to side in my chair, and I’m sure people thought that I had to go to the bathroom. I realized that the pain I was in was a reminder of my past sports participation, like football, weight lifting, softball.

Those were the good old days … back then you played hurt, and through pain, the coach would say “No Pain, No Gain”. Play through and be tough! I remember those days while playing high school and college football games; the nights after playing a game, laying in bed, could be a living hell. I would limp to school and then ache while sitting in class. Guess what, I am now paying the price for several years of sports.

How many of you who are ex-athletes are now paying the price for the good old days of playing sports? I get to talk to many old pro ball players, and when we get together, I can hear them share all about their stories about the aches and pains they go through. One former NFL offensive lineman, showed me his fingers, swollen and disfigured. You could tell they had been broken several times. Then I talked to a baseball player who had a bad back, and he was stiff and unable to move about very easily.

How many of you just don’t want to go to the doctor because it isn’t worth it? I put myself in that category. I hate needles, and IV’s. Anyone who knows me will tell you that I don’t do needles. I have had several surgeries, not one of them would I call fun! The surgeries were necessary, and would help me with daily living. The aches and pains don’t go away, they need to be taken care of.

I had one client who said he had some chest pains, not major, but ones that would come and go. I told him to get checked out. He looked in pretty good shape, but for his peace of mind, he went. He received a complete physical. Two days later, his doctor called him and said that he better come to his office, they needed to talk. When he arrived at the doc’s office the doctor told him to sit down. The doctor then told him that he had some major heart disease that needed to be taken care of and he needed to talk to a cardiologist right away.

My client went and saw the cardiologist and had surgery three days later. There was a blockage and he had it cleaned out. When I saw my client, he thanked me and said that I saved his life. Wow..I was overwhelmed and appreciated the kind words. You see, we have to keep getting our yearly check ups, take care of our bodies through daily exercise, and eat properly. If your a couch potato, get off your rear end and get some walking in. If you have poor eating habits, then start eating healthy foods. The only person who will look after you, is you! You can’t expect others to force you to go to the doctor, exercise or eat properly. That is your job, no one else’s.

So, if your feeling some health issues starting to take place, make an appointment with your doctor. If your experiencing shortness of breath, have chest pains, then make an appointment to see your family doc. If you have aches and pains in your joints, then get it looked at. There are numerous reasons to see your family doctor, don’t delay, make an appointment. I am trying to prevent further damage to your body. When I used to be at my clinic and talking with patients who had ailments, I would use the example of fixing a problem with the engine before it became a major repair. That’s what I am telling you, don’t let anything get out of hand, take care of business now. It could save your life in the long run.

Are you afraid to go to the doctor because you might get bad news? Do you hate taking med’s and pills? Do you think your not getting better and worry about the doc ordering tests for you? Do you think your medical problem will go away and its nothing to worry about? If you answered yes to any of these, you can call Dr. Mike at 303.456.0555 for help!

How does Life Coaching work?
You’ll meet once a week, by phone for a one-on-one conference, usually 45 minutes a session. In each phone conference you’ll plan and review, together, each of your “Focus Goals” and action areas. In each session, you’ll also receive support and guidance in creating the right attitudes and motivation in the area’s that you want to work on most. In addition to the weekly phone conferences, you’ll also communicate by e-mail, so you’ll have help and support throughout the week.
If you would like some help in dealing with personal issues in your life or the relationship that you’re in, you can contact Mike at 303.456.0555. If you need more information about the Professional Accountability Partner Program, call 303.456.0555 or go to contact Mike link to set up a free consultation appointment.