I choose to keep the glass half full, always, which is how I stayed positive through infertility.
I’ve always been an optimistic person who constantly looks at life’s blessings instead of the negative things that can feed into life. By nature, I tend to think about the good in people rather than see their flaws.
My “cup” wasn’t really tested until we began our fertility journey and it was becoming harder and harder to seem optimistic about the process.
Keeping the Glass Half Full: How I Stayed Positive Through Infertility:
My hopes and dreams of someday having a baby were becoming a little more distant.
My feelings about this tangible dream I had since childhood, were slowly disappearing down a long dark hallway and I couldn’t seem to grasp on anymore.
I remember the days of laying on the bathroom floor after yet another negative pregnancy test and sobbing into my arms. After a good cry, and ladies, we’re talking the Oprah Ugly Cry, I picked myself up off the floor and looked into the mirror.
I forced myself to smile.
It sucked, but I still made myself smile. Even at times when that smile was fake, I tried to mirror and grasp onto that optimistic woman that I knew was still in there somewhere because I knew I could only survive if I found a way and stayed positive through infertility.
I chose to keep the glass half full.
During the IVF process, I was one of the lucky women who got to experience 14 weeks of progesterone in oil injections once I became pregnant.
These shots were daily reminders of the painful, yet wild journey my husband and I were on.
Every morning at 5:30AM my husband would prepare to give me the injection. I had so much anxiety leading up to these that I was losing sleep.
I was overly hormonal already with the amount of drugs I was on in preparation for the transfer. I can remember sobbing after my husband pulled the first needle out. Not because of the pain of the needle, or the intense muscle pain in my rear, but because of the overwhelming feeling that came over me about this entire process.
Why did this have to happen?
Is it this hard to make a baby?
Is God trying to tell me something?
But still, I chose to keep the glass half full. I had to switch my outlook and attitude about the dreaded daily injection and pain that resulted. I stayed positive through infertility.
Instead of getting back into bed and thinking about the throbbing pain, my husband and I started going for walks each morning after the shot. This helped move that oil into my muscles and reduce the pain.
We bundled up each morning at 5:30 a.m. in December, put on our snow boots, and took the dog on a walk around the park. We watched the sunrise come up over the Colorado Rockies. Shades of purple, pink, orange and blue illuminated the skyline.
We held hands.
We connected.
As each day passed, I started to look forward to those early mornings and spending that time with my family.
Calm, quiet and at peace with each other, we were choosing to make the best out of a situation.
The days passed by and the shots continued; our bond continued to strengthen with each injection and early morning walk.
When the glass seems to be half empty, or even totally dry, the only way to to look at it is half full.
Infertility can be a dark and lonely journey. It can easily take over and break you down. How do you stay positive through infertility?
Chat with us in the comments below and share with us what has helped you stay positive in your darkest days.
