I Feel Good. I Feel Great. I Feel Wonderful.
My shoulders have been aching since 1999. There’s just something about going through a divorce that will throw the weight of the world onto your neck. I can only speak from a mother’s point of view, since I’ve never been a father. We tend to open a vault in our stomachs and announce to the world, “Hey, everyone. I feel like a piece of crap. I’ve decided to carry around a bunch of guilt and disappointment. I’m going to let my kids’ stuff, all of their heartache and tragedy, that I feel like I caused, in here, too. Anyone else want to stuff some bad feelings inside of me?” Here’s the thing about inviting the world to beat you up. The world is typically all too happy to join in the fun. Then there’s the whole added aspect of being a product of divorce, myself. Nothing says joy like throwing your children a birthday party and having to coordinate their grandparents’ arrivals and departures so they won’t run into each other. Then we lose people. It’s universal. My daughter – poof. Gone. My father isn’t here. My mom isn’t always sure who I am. If you’ve ever been sick before, really sick – and who hasn’t – add that into the mix. And, finally, it’s not like we’ve been quarantined in a really tacky alternate universe for over a year or anything, right? Are you feeling testy or a bit hopeless or a tad like you’ve had 10 plates spinning on very tall poles for 20 years and they’re all about to come crashing down to the ground? You are not alone, friends. What’s one to do? As for me, I’m taking a little stroll down to therapy land for the first time in 54 years.
