The Period of Remission

Medically, the term ‘remission’ means reduction in the size, symptoms, and severity of some disease or pain.

There are many people we know or know of who are fighting with one thing or the other in their lives. It could be a medical battle, or a financial one, or maybe one with their own selves. If we think deep enough, we will realise that each one of us is fighting with something on a daily basis. Everyday, we strive to be a better version of ourselves by maybe giving up on carbs if one’s on the ‘heavier’ side, or maybe giving up the habit of waking-up late. It could be anything! 

For every process, we think there are two phases. The first phase is of diagnosing or in general terms, the identification of the problem. Medically, it’s the doctors who run tests and come to a conclusion. In general life, it’s us, the individuals, who start facing problems because of a particular habit and finally infer it as being the cause. 

The second phase is of the treatment, post which the disease is cured or the problem is solved. It is the period in which the medications or any other forms of treatment are given to the patient. In general life, the individual starts making better choices towards a better living.

The basic human mindset knows only these two phases, the one before the problem, and the one after the problem. The one with all the darkness, and finally, the one having sunshine.

But how do we forget the most important and the toughest phase of it all? The phase in which you know you’re getting better, you know you’re walking towards the light, but well, you’re still in the tunnel!

If we give colours to our feelings, I’d say the phase of remission is the ‘gray’ period. The time when you don’t know whether to be happy or sad? Are you fine or not? Can you make certain choices now that you’re better or wait, because there’s still some distance left to cover?

And as if all this isn’t enough, there are slips-ups too. You might be on your way towards the left side of the weighing scale, when one fine day you wake up to see you’re 2 kilos heavier. You could be on your way to developing a new habit of working in a routine, when one day you wake up in the afternoon. 

The mind has its own way of working. The mind which has seen the lowest of lows knows how difficult it is to take the joys that life has to offer at a face value. It fears that it’s soon going to encounter something and it’ll all change. The fear is embedded so deep within, that it is almost as if one’s waiting for something bad to happen, because now it knows how dark things can get. This is what the phase of remission is all about. The pain caused by the lows, the fear of uncertainty, and the hope for the future. We’re all taught how sad or depressing the first phase is and how glorious the future will be, but no one talks about how confusing the phase of remission can be.

Well, we live and we learn. There are things that only situations can teach us, and these lessons are the best ones. And to life and all its adventures and tribulations, ‘Just bring it on!’