Dealing with Change

How often have your plans changed when you least expected it?

Happens to me all the time.

I planned to publish my Friday post earlier. However, my plans had to be altered following a routine physical exam this past Wednesday. No big scares. Only a minor setback.

My FNP recommended I receive the Tdap vaccine since I’d not had a tetanus shot in a while and my whooping-cough shot dated back to the Johnson administration–or thereabouts. “You might experience a little muscle soreness at the injection site,” she said.

Well, you know the fine print where it says one in 300 will have a severe reaction? That was me. I spent much of the past two days shuffling between the bed and the couch as I battled muscle aches, headaches, chills, and other flu-like symptoms. At times it felt like someone had taken a baseball bat to various parts of my body. Thankfully I’m doing better.

Change can be unsettling. However, it can also be exciting.

Some of the greatest events in my life came about as the result of major changes.

I met and married my wonderful husband.
He got his dream job teaching at a U.S. military high school in Nürnberg, Germany.
We learned that I was pregnant with our daughter.
My agent called to tell me a publisher wanted to buy my book.

How we deal with change has much to do with our temperaments. A friend and I received some interesting news recently, and we responded quite differently. She immediately saw the positives, whereas I was a bit bowled over.

I wish I were like my friend, but it takes me time to adjust to any kind of news, good or bad. In this case the news is good, but I needed time to process the information.

Realizing that change can be a good thing is key to responding to it positively. I remind myself that were it not for the changes that have taken place in my life, I’d have missed out on many wonderful opportunities.

One big change I’m facing is the release of my debut novel. It’s scheduled to hit shelves in July. I’m busy learning about promotion and marketing, planning my launch party, and lining up bloggers who want to participate in a blog tour. I’m reading posts of those who’ve traveled this path before me. And I’m learning to embrace the changes to come.

And not to worry. I will avoid getting any kind of vaccine at the end of June.

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How do you deal with change? Are you immediately swept up in the excitement of a new possibility, or do you, like me, need a little while to adjust to the news?