The Beginning of the Journey and Priorities.... did I have them all wrong - of course!
When I set my mind to something, that's it...
June 2014, another birthday which means another year older, so I made myself an appointment with the GP... asking for a referral letter to get on board this Motherhood train.
After some research, I had chosen to go with IVF Australia to take me on this journey, I selected my IVF specalist and went through all of the tests... Hurrah at last I hear those words every female, who wants to be a mum at some point in her life, wants to hear... You're Fertile.
At this point I realise how VERY lucky I am, as I have been on this IVF journey with many of my dear friends and it is tough!
I start to make a plan (come on I am a career girl at heart, I can't function on a no-plan plan!)
It was October 2014 before I could actually really do anything, my first step was to join the Waitlist... a 3-4 month wait?! Before I can even get onto the next steps! That takes me to February 2015.
But actually I could have started this much earlier... actually here's the real harsh truth - Putting My Job First and working IVF appointments around meetings and business trips, even if that meant waiting another 2 weeks or more for the next IVF appointment! I look back now and think "silly girl"!
Now read my header again... Yes I was wrong!
The reality is that the workplace, particularly when you are an Executive in a dynamic and fast paced business, is powered by stress. I may be at fault as I am a high achiever and always strive for the best in my career, but with a stressful work environment comes sleep deprivation and the question there is "How can I perform and make the right decisions?" The answer is you can't.
The irony is, at work, I ensure "health measures" are conducted weekly, sometimes daily, around brand health, financial performance, social media performance and website anlaytics results; yet I never do the "health checks" on myself - which is utterly ridiclous, as without health our worth is nothing.
So why was it so difficult to juggle work and medical appointments, would I have done the same if I had a terminal illness or ended up breaking something and bed ridden for days or weeks on end - the answer is no, because I would have had no choice. I realise now that we need to make choices that put us and our values first!
My values are all around my career and trying for a baby - so why was it so hard to manage them both as key priorities?
Someone recently said to me...
"When someone loses their way, it is because they lost sight of their values and what was important to them".