When doubt creeps in

In a therapy session recently I said to my therapist “I don’t feel like I’m progressing.” And she looked at me and said “But you are progressing.”

That sent me back to a memory of attending births. How many times have I not supported someone through labor who says “Nothing is happening!” Or “This baby is never coming!” And with certainty I always say: “The baby is coming.” Because pregnancies always end with the baby coming out, sooner or later, in one way or the other. 

So when I feel like life is stagnant imagining it as birth helped me. Maybe I’m at the end of labor but just don’t know it yet. Birth isn’t a straight line, neither is life. Maybe my therapist is my emotional Midwife. She’s close by, mirroring what I’m saying and helping me through the difficult parts. She highlights and celebrates my wins. She reminds me of my progress and my strength. Just like a good Midwife would do during a birth. 

Once the baby is born women usually look up, sometimes in disbelief saying “I did it!” I love that moment, the moment when they realize they did the hard thing! When life is hard, birth is a good reminder of your strength. If you got through those moments that pushed you to the edge, those moments when you felt like giving up but didn’t, then you can get through anything! You are powerful! You can do this! You are doing it!

I DID IT!

This pictures is taken minutes after my third birth.

One day I will share the birth story here on the blog.