Re: Welcome...

Hello, I also wanted to introduce myself. I'm Leilani and I joined this pod because I can relate to being stuck, then unstuck, stuck, and unstuck again since I left my dead end job in 1998.  I've had a long journey to get where I am today.  My journey started after my father was hospitalized with a major stroke that left him temporarily paralyzed.  My job situation was the worst I've ever seen in life…I never realized the callousness of people until that time period.  And, things just got worse and worse.  People bailed out on me during my time of need, I went through a severe depression.  I encountered the cruelty and meaness of people simply because I decided to stand up for myself.  Then, 9/11 and all those horrible terrorist events hit close to home (I've live near Washington, D.C.)

I went back to college against enormous odds - starting as a community college entrant at 27.  I managed to complete a college degree and enter graduate school.  I went through all types of journals - I had colored coded ones, black, purple, blue, pink, gold, etc. depending on what I was writing about.  All I can say is that during these times of transition I needed support but I couldn't get that support from a traditional group.  I did make it through those transitional times but mainly because I went through non-traditional means.  I spent, what felt like an eternity as if I were in a contemplative existence.  But now, I realize I needed to be seperated from people to find myself.  If I learned something from this whole stuck and unstuck experience, it would that I had to sift through who I was without all that background noise.  Being alone - I learned what I value the most and what I want to do.  I had to tell people that this is my life and this is what I'm doing. 

So, I'm glad to be here and know that I'm not alone in my experiences.  Thank you.

Leilani