Fr Jim Cogley
PMS usually refers to Pre-Menstrual Syndrome but it could equally stand for Poor Me Syndrome. This is where we feel sorry for ourselves and hard done by. When it happens it is usually a disguised invitation to check the focus of our lives. Often some hurt, disappointment or loss has triggered a change from looking out, to looking in. When we do, we find ourselves looking into a black hole that nothing, not God, man or the devil can fill. We then engage in self-pity and become acutely aware of al that we don’t have and lose sight of the blessings that are all around us. We then envy those who seem to have everything that we don’t and in doing become more and more blind to our own gifts and talents. To consciously adjust our focus off ourselves may mean challenging our comfort zone and doing things we have been avoiding. It may mean taking exercise and engaging with friends and allowing the beauty of nature to speak to us. Particularly developing an attitude of gratitude can be a great help because being grumpy and being grateful can’t co-exist.