Words of wisdom

I've spent the last couple of days hiding out at home, retreating from the world and taking the first steps to rejuvenating.

Tonight, I was finally ready to sit down and reply to all the amazing comments I have received over the last week.  As they have come in, it has been wonderful and reassuring to read them.  Sitting down tonight though, I hadn't realised just how many there were!!!

Thank you all so much for your support and words of wisdom.  I am overwhelmed with your generosity and your welcoming of me into this community.  I've said already how I feel about this amazing community.  There is like no other blogging community like it, that I have come across.  I am so grateful.

I have now replied to every single one of you.  Do you all subscribe to comments and receive the replies and further comments? 

As I was catching up on them through my email client, I found myself creating a new folder and saving them.  There are so many wonderful words of advice and experience that will help me for some time to come.  I thought I would do a summary of some of the things that you have shared, that I have learnt, been reminded of, and had brought to my attention.  There are sparks of awareness and healing that have begun to work there way into my system already!

You may recognise your words in amongst the mix - I hope that's okay.  Links to all the women who contributed to these understandings are on the right.  Please go and visit them!

While I've created this list for me, it's also for anyone else out there who will also find some healing or guidance from it.  May our journeys be fruitful ones, peaceful, kind and loving.

• When faced with moving away from the IF journey, you suddenly feel that you have lost your focus in life.  For years, getting pregnant has been the goal.  What do you do know?  If you are not a mother, then what are you?  What is your self-worth?  What is life all about?  Who ARE you?
• Take the time and space to help bring things into focus before deciding on the next steps.  It's okay to 'float' for a while.  Do a lot of soul searching, sort through your feelings, find out what it is you really want to do and how far you want to travel along the IF journey.
• This time can be a profound period of personal growth.  Allow yourself to unearth all sorts of interesting sides to who you are.  What do you enjoy?  Is there something new you want to try? 
• Don't expect too much from yourself. You don't need to have a big "purpose" in life.  Being a mother is not what makes you worthwhile.  Discover who you are just as you, not with any role or title, simply who YOU are.
• Be Kind To Yourself.

I'd like to finish with one quote from a comment Aurora Bordeaux from Baby Off Board left me.  I keep coming back to it time and time again with big smiles, warmth, gratitude and, most importantly, laughter in my heart. 

"Laughter is important. Fun is essential. Healing can be so difficult, but as you emerge and form a revised perspective on your chosen path, I wish you gobs of giddiness, rivers of hilarity, fountains of cleansing laughter, and memorably outrageous adventure. Most of all, I wish you joy."

:):):)