(no subject)

[kellinator]

I was raised to be terrified of change.

In Pulaski, you get a job right out of high school, and you stay there until you retire or they lay you off to outsource your job to overseas, you marry your high-school sweetheart and if you're my parents, you stay married even if you hate each other. (If you're somebody else's parents, you embark on a whirlwind of divorces and remarriages that you need a scorecard to keep up with, but I digress.)

I stayed with high-school band even though I hated it, because I didn't want to be a quitter. I declared before I even started kindergarten that I was going to go to Vanderbilt, and I did.

I don't know how to strike out in a new direction. I don't know how to be brave.

I'm so scared I could throw up.

Comments

[manifestress.livejournal.com]

keep breathing

one foot in front of the other

focus on what is directly in front of you

you can do it!

[football-swan.livejournal.com]

Taking risks always should involve a little fear.

The first major change/risk will be your hardest. They get much easier with each change/risk you take. Trust me on this.

Surround yourself with friends who will support your decision, no matter how they personally feel.

And then, take a deep breath and do it.

[heathrow.livejournal.com]

You _can_ do this.

What We Keep

[satia.livejournal.com]

That is a title of a novel by Elizabeth Berg.

Even when things change, you can and do take some things with you. Nobody loses everything even in the largest of changes.

You often complain about where you are, how you are not happy with things as they are. The only way to get free from what you don't love, you need to change. That said, you don't have to change everything. After all, even in this, there is much that you love.

As they say in the 12 steps . . . take what you like and leave the rest.

[triest.livejournal.com]

Bravery, I was told just this weekend, is being afraid you're about to fail and doing it anyway.

As somene above said: One foot in front of the other.

[alendres.livejournal.com]

Always try to regret those things that you have NOT done more than those things that you HAVE.

[christine9600.livejournal.com]

Honey, take a deep breath here, okay? I don't really have any grand advice to dole out on accepting change, but I can say that overthinking it can make it much, much bigger and scarier than it needs to be. Do it in small steps, just kind of see where each little step takes you and then go from there. Quit trying to plan the end result. You can't put that kind of pressure on yourself or anyone else. Plan the end of the day, not the end of the year, okay? Relaaaaax... ;-)

[deza.livejournal.com]

It helps if you know you have friends ready and waiting to help you through. *hugs*

[sharrainchains.livejournal.com]

Oh, do I understand! But your friends are right: you get through it by focusing on the moment and on the next step.

Also: imposed change can really improve the situation for those of us who won't budge without a crowbar or explosives. I am petrified/terrified by change, too, but I can honestly say that in retrospect, I am far better off because of each of the changes. Whatever is happening, you will be better off eventually - and, clearly, you will have friends and support through it all! ::hug and virtual cup of tea:: EGBAR (evrathin' gon' be aw-right)!

[caffron.livejournal.com]

The following comment is not intended to be snarky:

Just throw up! Seriously! Should you hold in everything? No! Should you spend all of your time dreaming of the life you didn't take? No to that too.

I have closets full of possible regrets, but each one of them has allowed me to become the person I am. If you judge me by how much of my "potential" I realized, I guess you could consider me a failure. When I die, though, I'll know who I was. I'll have stuffed my life with experiences that filled me with joy and pain, sorrow and bliss. You can exude chicken-feces-ness if you want...it's actually better if you don't put on a false brave face, but you'll find it a lot easier to find joy if you take just a single step for yourself. It can be something that seems really insignificant and silly (like coloring your hair) but every little step gets you there. The best cure for anomie is not-so-random action. You can't learn to ride a bike if you're afraid to skin your knees, right? Hang in there; you're not alone!