It is so important to stay true to oneself, even if there are many societal shoulds. I write this post as a gentle nudge, if you feel something in your gut, listen to it. Ask yourself some hard questions and ask if you deserve the truth. Even if it’s dark, painful or uncomfortable. Are you able to ready to bear the accusation of betrayal and not betray your own soul?

Moral of the story, when you are feeling anxious or stressed, ask yourself: What is the worst that can happen? Then assess, can you handle that situation and is it as untenable or scary as you think? If not, put things into perspective and know that whatever situation, trust yourself and that you’ve got this. Now, use that in our daily situations as how we do the daily and small stuff, is a reflection of, and helps us handle the bigger stuff.

Know that I love you unconditionally. If I know what that means. Know that I love you to the best of my ability and that my heart opens up to you and holds a place there for you. Know that I love you no matter what. You can do no wrong in my eyes and you are perfect as you are. I may tell you when I disagree with you, but I will never judge you or forsake you. Know that I want to be, and am wholly here for you. That words cannot express the love I hold for you, with you and receive from you. I feel this love for you because you love me in return and it’s a connection that is cherished above all else. Love, connection, truth, cannot ever be destroyed. No matter what. Know that I love you, and am here with you. I stand by your side, always.

In climbing, part of the Warrior’s Way is to ask oneself, is this part of the climb making me uncomfortable or scared? If the answer is yes, this is where you start practicing falling. You choose to keep falling in that area until it becomes not scary, familiar, and you know what to expect. It’s brilliant.

Have the discipline to not give up on yourself. Stay the course.

I am pleased to say the egg freezing process went smoothly and the procedure was successful. The two weeks of daily hormone injections, blood tests and scans were intense. But I was more equipped in knowing what to expect, and knew exactly what I was getting myself into, having done it once already. It was less daunting and I understood that in doing this second round, I have done my personal best in keeping my options open so I won’t have regrets, at least on this front. I now have the bloating and weight loss to “deal with” but I feel grateful that I am healthy. I did not end up with hyper-stimulation (so far) and I can move on with my life and put this section to bed. I can earn the money back in the future, but I can’t capture the quality of my eggs down the road. I am proud to have done this, again. And alone. I did not feel sad or lonely. But I did it by myself. (With the support of the ARGC, whose staff members are wonderful.) It felt empowering and reminded me that I am strong and capable. That I am surrounded by love and people whom I can count on, but ultimately, I can count on myself. If you are considering this but not sure, reach out and I would be happy to have a conversation with you. It’s not for everyone, but don’t wait too long to think about it. Time really does fly by and it’s not a must, but I do urge you to seriously consider this. Not enough people talk about how as women, we are taught we can conquer the world, but there are some limitations of biology that we need to factor in.

My life is filled with the souls of women I love. The ones who make my belly ache from laughter, who catch my tears. Who show up on my doorstep to celebrate and grieve, who defend me when I’m unkind to myself. These women will love my children, dance as we age, protect my secrets, share in my joy, sing even when we’re sinking in sorrow. They walk close, promising their lives to me—a marriage without a wedding; a commitment without a ring. If you have these women too, remember: the soulmate is a wonderful thought but look how beautiful these love stories are. Look how they make you full.

By Hannah Rosenberg

We grow the most when we “fail”, press past our comfort zones or have no other choice. Usually, the scariest thing in our heads are the ones that will lead to the greatest evolution. When we face our fear and go into the discomfort, we find that it was not as scary as we thought it might be. And the relief, and result tend to be very rewarding.

I was married to a covert narcissist and did not really realise the extent (or the impact) of the emotional manipulation until I had walked away from the relationship and had a bit of distance, (and luck) to put two and two together. I had moments of doubt/questions, months and perhaps even years in advance, but I chose to ignore the feelings, rationalise them away and convince myself that I was in love.