Friday, October 21, 2011

Therapy


First off, thank you to those of you who commented with comforting words about my being nervous for my first therapy visit.  It really did help calm my nerves.

Now.  Where to begin.  I think I like therapy, but I’m not sure.  The lady I spoke with, we’ll call her F, was very sweet and I suppose I found it easy to talk to her because I was in tears in no time.  I didn’t know what to say at first because I have never done anything like this before.  She asked what I wanted to get out of therapy.  I’m pretty sure I had a blank stare of my face because it took me a while to answer.  Plus, my answer in a nut shell was, “hell if I know”.  So she started to ask me questions about how long Mr. Mags and I had been trying for a baby and then everything just sort of bubbled up to the surface.  I seriously can’t believe how much I told her in an hour, and looking back I wonder if she was overwhelmed by my babbling or able to keep tally on what I was saying.  I mean, we went through the whole gamete!

PCOS – Check!
Hypothyroid – Check!
Bicornuate Uterus – Check!
Mother-in-Law’s passing – Check!
3 RE’s – Check!
11 total Clomid Cycles – Check!
3 IUI’s – Check!
1 IVF – Check!
1 FET – Check!
3 Losses – Check!
3 Job layoffs – Check!
2 Moves – Check!
1 Short Sale – Check!
Weight Issues – Check!
Spiritual Crisis – Check!
Family Drama – Check!

Seriously, that’s a lot of shit.  SHIT I tell you. 

Anyway, she mentioned some things she thought we could work on and get to the root of, for example; I know I NEED to lose weight.  I know HOW to lose weight.  I know I am doing things right now NOT to lose weight.  But WHY am I doing those things?  Again, “hell if I know”. 

There were a few things that kind of pissed off the bitter infertile in me though.  When we first started talking about PCOS and my hypothyroidism F asked me if I had ever tried acupuncture and that her friend had gotten several women pregnant with that.  I just rolled my eyes and said, “That’s nice.  And I do go to acupuncture.”  Then she asked me if I had heard of a “Fertility Cookbook” that is supposed to make you more fertile.  (SERIOUSLY?!?!?!)  I, politely as possible, interrupted her and told her that I was beyond all of that.  I’ve been there and done that and now I’m here.  She nodded in agreement and I felt kind of bad for blowing her ideas down, but, like I said, I’m done with that route-it didn’t work for me and I’ve moved on.

As the talking continued she asked me how old I was and I told her, 31.  She said, “The good news is you’re still young, you’ve got plenty of time”.  Again, I told her as politely as possible that I was extremely tired of people telling me that I was young.  I have been hearing that for 7 years and what good has it done me?  She actually responded by telling me, “Thank you.  I need for you to continue to tell me when I’ve said something to upset you or I suggest a direction you are not interested in going.  This is your session and your time.”  Wow.  She was right, I was right, so that was pretty neat!  I really can say what I want and need to say in there. 

The whole issue of my age and Mr. Mags age brought up some heavy stuff though, which is a good thing I suppose.  What a lot of my fear and anxiety comes down to in regard to wanting a baby and wanting it NOW is that I am afraid I am going to lose Mr. Mags to early onset Alzheimer’s.  I have this timeline in my head that he is going to start showing signs any day now and be diagnosed (as best as Dr.’s can) with it by 58, just like his mom was and pass away at 64.  That means if I were to get pregnant tomorrow our kid would be 16 when his dad is diagnosed at 58 with that horrendous disease.  And say we are lucky enough to have another baby after who would be 14 or so.  The thought just tears my up inside…and God forbid it happen earlier!  We dove a little further into it than that and maybe I’ll share that on a rainy day.

Needless to say I left feeling completely bewildered and exhausted.  I don’t know if I really liked it or not.  It was so weird to have someone sit there and just kind of stare at me with this concerned look on her face while I talked and cried. 

One thing I really did take away from this is, in looking back on my session I relayed “my story” fast and slow, mumbled and jumbled and completely unorganized and out of order.  I realize THAT is how my life feels right now.  Completely unorganized, out of order and totally jumbled. 

I have another appointment next week, so until then, the verdict is still out.  Is therapy for me?  I’m not sure.  It could be that I’m just scared to do the “work”.

2 comments:

  1. Hey Mags - whew, sounds like your first session was productive even if it was overwhelming. It's hard to be on a timer with your talking- I feel like I have to get everything out really fast. Next time will probably be more relaxed because you have gotten most of your stuff out there. Good for you for telling her you were past the acupuncture/fertility diets. You don't need any more advice on how to get pregnant. It is kinda weird and scary to tell a stranger your deepest darkest secrets, but it can be carthartic, and you can realize your problems are not so insurmountable and terrible as they appear in your mind.

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  2. Thanks for stopping by to say hi! Good for you for giving therapy a try. I have done it on and off for years. It does take some getting used to, but I think it can be really helpful. But it is true, it can be hard to do the work. I actually just quit going because most of the work I need to do relates to my relationship with ym dad, and with dealing with infertility, there is just no emotional energy left to take on another topic right now. Anyway, hope it works for you!

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