Practising Self Love
I’m going to share some posts in this blog about my thoughts and feelings throughout the IVF process. Initially, when I started this blog, I only wanted to include useful information about IVF and create a guide that outlines each step of the process. But as I think more about it now, I realise it’s also important to document how I’m feeling during this time. We all experience things differently, and the idea of becoming a parent has really brought a lot of emotions to the surface for me. It has pushed me to work on being the best version of myself. And I think that is worth a share.
As someone who tends to overthink, going through IVF has definitely cranked that aspect of me up to eleven. While overthinking can sometimes lead to productivity, it also opens the door to worries. Questions like: Will I be a good parent? Can I afford to raise a child? What happens when I need to return to work? What if I can’t have a child?
To help manage these worries, I’ve started to incorporate some new habits like meditation. Before now, I hadn’t really practised it much—just a few attempts here and there. Every time I try to meditate though, my mind tends to wander to a million other thoughts. I’m still figuring this out, but I’m hoping with practice, I can have fewer racing thoughts over time! Thinking about becoming a parent makes me want to take action and implement habits like this, especially if they can help me manage stress down the line.
Reflecting on one recent weekend. It was a Saturday, my favourite day of the week. I completed a meditation and then jumped out of bed full of energy. I threw on my exercise gear, ready for a workout, and turned on my pink salt lamp (I love my salt lamp!). In that moment, I felt really positive and proud thinking of some of my new habits. I said to myself, “I’m proud of you, and I love you.”
It was random, but I even found myself thanking God. This was a surprise since I’m not a particularly religious person. I was baptised Catholic, but I don’t go to church or read the Bible. For some reason, feeling all this love, in this moment, led me to think about gratitude and God.
I decided that today, I’m going to embrace self-love and appreciate the opportunity I have to live on this earth. I’m going to find the lessons in each experience that I have. I also started reflecting on how crucial it is to put in the work of loving and accepting myself. How can I teach my future child about this if I haven’t done it myself?
From now on, focusing on self-love is going to be a big priority for me. I had a little chuckle to myself and decided to call this “the love project.” I’m not my experiences. There’s another me beneath it all—the me that has been lost along the way. Lost in the hustle and bustle of life. I’m determined to continue to work on bringing that person out, so I can ensure I have all the love in the world to give to someone else.
This post may seem like a bit of a ramble, but I wanted to share these thoughts because they are part of my story ❤️
What’s up next? Next, I’m going to discuss IVF medications in the lead up to egg collection.
Recommended podcast: Becoming a solo mum by choice through IVF
If you haven’t already, check out my post on – Should I consider IVF as a single person.
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