A Disease Will Change Your Life

I'll quit smoking when I'm be old.

I'll stop eating junk food when I have to.

I'll take care of my sleep after I make the first $1,000,000.

I'd rather take care of my parents/grandparents and take the shots myself.

I hear you clearly and loudly for every statement. Theoretically, there's always time in the future. In reality, you don't even know if you're going to live the next breath.

Let me picture my past when I was 19 and you'll understand where this letter is going.

Looking from the outside, I was a cool guy, very easy to integrate within groups, sociable, who followed the group no matter how stupid or harmful the activities were. I was everywhere, anytime.

Looking from the inside, I was a scared and depressed guy, who was afraid of being excluded from those groups, and was up for anything just for the feeling of belonging.

Shortly, I was addicted to "fame" and to the label of "cool guy" overdrinking, smoking, eating junk food and not caring about sleep.

If people around you acclaim you, but you're feeling lost, either you or them act fake.

In my case at that time, I was the one acting fake, because I didn't enjoy any of those harmful habits. And luckily, if I can call it so, the only thing on Earth that could finally stop me was an autoimmune disease.

A month after I turned 19, I was urgently hospitalized due to severe weight loss, constant abdominal pain, intestinal bleeding, and close to 0 energy.

I was diagnosed with advanced Crohn's disease and immediately put on "shock treatment" for the following months.

The first week was ok. But for the next 2 weeks, I was just lying in bed, sleeping and imagining how terrible my life has to be to die so young. Since then I dreamed of having a lovely family, a business, explore the life, and suddenly, everything was about to vanish.

All until one night, when I heard my mom crying in the other room. That triggered an unreal spark of motivation inside, and a desire to prove the contrary, that I am going to live.

Fast forward to today, I am grateful for how the disease contributed in my life: it pushed me towards the deepest fears, so I became aware how powerful faith is.

I had to believe I would live a normal life, when death was closely watching me. This is faith.

Today, I am a perfectly healthy person, with no restrictions, because I found myself in the context of being forced to choose: to live or not.

I wish you don't reach such thresholds of your health damage to pivot your life, and become aware of the consequences before.

Looking at my past, at my parents, at some of my friends, the pattern is to leave the health of your body, mind and soul for the future. When they'll be extremely damaged and even harder to recover.

I'd love to see people more present and anchored to their quality of present, instead of the quality of their future. You only know what you're doing now, take control over it.

If there's anything to be left for the future, your worries should be the ones.

I mentioned I was close to death twice. And because we forget our lessons if not practiced regularly, I had a YOLO moment in 2022 when I was roller skating at max speed, on a double slope, curved.

My bad luck was that a bike jumped from the off-road in my face, when I lost control and crashed at around 35 km/h. My clothes were literally burnt due to the high friction of my skin with the asphalt.

On the other side, my luck was that I kept my head straight, protected, and leaned back just before crashing. Otherwise, from what doctors told me, I most probably wouldn't write this letter.

The recovery was tough, hard and long, for about 3-4 months, as I had internal bleeding and my hamstring was pretty crushed. Like a miracle, as it happened in the previous case, I only have some scars that can barely be noticed, having no physical limitations.

Adrenaline feels amazing. Being safe elevates the sensation even more.

I had one colleague asking me: why are you so much into a healthy lifestyle? After I explained him my experience with Crohn's disease, with a sad and empathic reaction, he replied: I hoped you chose that path without having a "must do".

I'll never forget that dialog, because he was right! And the only one who pointed it right. Why do we need to become sick to change our life?

And these are the 2 takeaways from this letter:

If you've been through a disease, have faith, and take the right decisions for you every single day. You'll be just fine, it only takes time and discipline. Everything can be turned positive.

If a disease didn't touch you, just take the right decisions for you every single day. You don't need to suffer that pain to change. It isn't worth it.

Letter's Quest

At this point in my life, I believe that diseases form as a sign of our emotional and spiritual instability.

The lack of self-confidence, respect, appartenance are the perfect engine to go intro drugs, too much alcohol, too much junk food, and whatnot.

Emotional stability means that you're not vulnerable to the present because of your past losses, traumas and shortcomings.

Spiritual stability builds by recognizing your inner values, habits and way of living. You live your way, not other person's way.

Combining them will let you filter out toxic people in your life who unconsciously infer bad habits and drag you into deeper and more profound pains.

Pick one area in your life that is the most damaged: nutrition, sleep, feelings, love.

Using a journal or through meditation, think about every single person that is influencing in any way that area.

Become aware that you were not under your own control in that area, but under other's opinions and biases. They should only take care of their life, and you of yours.

Until the next letter, I wish you success in everything you're up to!