Growing up, I think we all had an image of what we envisioned our lives to be as adults. The nice job, car, partner, maybe even a few kids. And sure enough in this lovely day and age of social media, we are a scroll away from seeing all these people ticking these milestones off of their lists. I am happy for them. Truly.
In some cultures (like mine), getting married is one of the biggest achievements for a woman. Here you were, calculating what you needed on your final exam to graduate, then fluffing up your resume for a job to get experience, that requires experience to apply – when all you needed was a husband! Forget the aunts at family reunions, I’ve had ‘friends’ (very loosely used), who have recently gotten married and because of this act like they are somehow more successful than those who are not. Or maybe we are working on other things! Like getting through half a dozen donuts in one sitting. THIS should be applauded. You just have more people to answer to now, Stacy.
I say this like I am too busy succeeding in other areas, when currently the biggest achievement for me is the days I leave the house. That sounds like a sweet deal – unemployed, able to laze at home all day binge-watching Netflix, changing out of my daytime pyjamas into my nighttime ones, and because I live alone – doing absolutely nothing with no one to judge you. I too, once, had all these aforementioned ‘life goals’, I trained as a pastry chef over the course of a few years, and have always dreamed of opening my own dessert bar. But in between juggling Helga, *debilitating bi-weekly migraines, that have been around for a good 10 years* and Thelma, **Helga’s mental health counterpart,** reality has recently hit hard these past few months, and I have succumbed to the fact that although this could happen later on, maybe when there is a break-through in medical research or some divine intervention, right now this will have to remain as a dream. Doing anything at all that requires a daily commitment is not on the table, forget that, the days Helga turns full bitch-mode, so does my sensitivity to light and sound, that even scrolling through Insta is not possible, let alone Netflix! And the icing on the fucking cake, is that I am not able to eat cake! (or anything) during this time, because, lucky me, I have nausea to join the party too! What is life without food??
So what do I do all day? Being in a dark, cold, quiet room is not exactly the definition of ‘living your best life’. It is day-dependent. So in attempts to not jump off of a building on grave days, (don’t worry, I am in therapy), on better days I have been on the path to ‘find myself’. I say it in speech marks because a) it is harder than it looks, and b) so far I don’t even know if I like what I am finding! For example, I now do yoga which is meant to center you, relax your mind, except all I have learnt so far is I sweat in more places than I thought possible, & muscles that I assumed were working fine (or rather working better than parts I knew were weak), betray you when you are holding a pose by frantically twitching! And then my anxiety somehow manages to kick in because it’s not going right, and it just all ends up far from Centered. BUT, I will stick with it, its the only form of exercise I can do without triggering Helga.
As well as this, I enjoy travelling! You can tell I’m really trying this whole ‘Eat, Pray, Love’, thing. Most recently I went to Greece, as much as one would HOPE your body will let you enjoy just a few days (who are we kidding), out of the 11 days, I had 5 bad days, and by bad I mean I couldn’t get out of bed! What I have come to terms with is that because those days will come, the only way to survive is to make the good days count. Sometimes it feels like I’m mentally and physically drowning and there is no way out, all you see is darkness (it could also be because I can’t switch on the lights), but since I’ve stopped comparing my timeline of life with others around me, there is a small hope that some day I too, at my own pace, will be able to check things off my list. For now, I take the days I smile as an achievement, (and eating half a dozen donuts in one sitting), who knows maybe one day it’ll be a full dozen!
Sending love your way,
Emma B ♡
You are a truly amazing person. To actually write this down is incredibly hard, to admit to yourself firstly. To actually seek out counselling means your willing to fight. I wish you loads of luck
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Thank you for your kind words, Ellie 🙂 We are all fighting a fight of sorts aren’t we!
Emma B ♡
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Everyone’s timeline is different, but as long as you do what makes you happy, follow your own path, that is the most important thing. You shouldn’t feel like you have to do something in a certain timeframe!
Love, Amie ❤
The Curvaceous Vegan
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I’m glad you feel the same way 🙂 sometimes things work out differently for others, but it doesn’t mean their way is any better than yours!
Sending love your way,
Emma B ♡
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Such a great post – life can be hard sometimes and we all face different setbacks but it’s also good to allow yourself space and time to heal. One day things won’t be quite so hard and day by day it will get easier to do what you need and want 💛 stay strong and I hope you find some peace in this new month xx
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Thank you for your kind words darling, hope you have a beautiful month ahead 🙂
Emma B ♡
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Thanks for sharing your story. Wishing you more good days 💖
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Thank you for your kind wishes, have a lovely month ahead 🙂 💛
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Keep doing Yoga! Sweating is good lol! I hope u having better days. Sorry Your Greece trip was kinda wack
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haha I will! hopefully the sweating lessens at some point 😂
hope you’re having a lovely start of the month darling!
sending love your way,
Emma B ♡
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Great blog post babe, really well-written. Thanks for sharing something so personal 💜✨
With love, Alisha Valerie x
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Thank you Alisha for being so kind 🙂
Hope you are having a lovely November!
Sending love your way,
Emma B ♡
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Sending all the love. It’s so sad the amount of pressure unnecessarily put on us by other people and the damage that does. Thanks for having the courage to share your story and I hope you’re ok. This was a really great post 💕
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I agree! As if we don’t have enough to deal with without the extra people pressure! Thank you so much for your kind words Sammie, hope you are having a lovely month 🙂
Sending love your way,
Emma B ♡
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So good, Emma! Comparison is the thief of joy, as they say. That’s a saying, right? Anyway, it sounds like you’re truly doing the best you can – yoga, Greece, and donuts? I’m in! Good for you!
Deb
imperfectprogress.me
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Haha I shall use this saying! Donuts always win!! Thank you Deb for your vote of confidence! 🙂
Sending love your way,
Emma B ♡
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You are an inspiration! Sharing your story on this platform or any platform really is so amazing. I thank you for sharing 🙂
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thank you RoseMarie, you are too kind 😍
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You’re very welcome😊
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I have enjoyed reading this so much!! You are such an inspiration!! Followed and I cannot wait to read more from you!!!
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thank you darling, you are too kind!! hope you are having a lovely week, looking forward to your updates 🙂 💛
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Thank you lovely! Hope you’ve had a good week too!
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Thank you for sharing your story. Don’t compare your timeline with others, that will only set you up for failure. God has a plan for all of us in his own time. You are a strong person. I will be praying for you. Again, thank you for sharing.
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Thank you for the kindest comment 💛 I hope you have a wonderful holiday season! xx
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You too!
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This is the most relatable thing I have read in a long time. Thank you for writing this. xx
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It’s an unfortunate circumstance, but it’s so nice to hear that we aren’t going through this alone 💛 hope you are having a beautiful start to the year my lovely! xx
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