When I reflect on what I’m thankful for, my mind is overwhelmed with all the Blessings I have in my life. My babies and husband are, of course, the top of my list, but family, friends, and a career that I love are there as well. But there is another group that I am thankful for. I call them my “IVF Mafia” or “my girls” as many of you have heard me refer to them. I truly wish I could put into words what they mean to me, but nothing I come up with could ever suffice.
Meet my mafia…..
When we began our journey into creating our family, I researched every single thing I could get my hands on. I mean EVERYTHING. I logged every medication I ever took, follicle counts, E2 levels, etc. If it had to do with infertility, I knew it backwards and forwards.
However, I was still searching. Searching for someone/anyone who understood what I was going through. Not in the “everything happens for a reason” understanding, but a wholehearted understanding of the guilt, sadness, jealousy, loneliness, and frustration that comes along with it.
I reached out to some online forums, and found a bit of solace with other women, but it wasn’t what I needed. These people were strangers behind a screen name. I knew nothing of their lives. Then one day there was a post asking if anyone wanted to join a secret Facebook group in order to truly get to know each other and actually share our LIVES with one another. As soon as I read it, I asked to join. I could never have known then how this small group of women would change my life.
As the group formed, we began sharing….not just stories of our IF struggles, but about our LIVES. If you would have told me I would create a bond like this over the internet, I would have told you to get a life, and get some “real” friends.
The thing is, they have become so much more than “real” friends. They are my family. These women know more about me than almost anyone. They are my Mafia. (Just an FYI… I wouldn’t mess with any of us unless you want to take on the entire group – I have proof! Ha!) We have celebrated some amazing highs, and supported each other through some terrible lows. They have prayed with me and for me through the years, and I truly don’t know what I would have done without them!
We met in May of this year, and the bond was solidified. We put together a little video of what pulled us together, and the struggles we had been through.
To my Mafia girls – you are the most incredibly strong women I know. You have persevered through some of the toughest struggles, while continuing to support and rejoice for others. You have given me such a safe place to just “be” through my IF journey, and through my life in general. I love you girls so much, and am extremely THANKFUL to have you in my life. Your friendships have blessed me far beyond measure, and for that I will always be grateful. I am so blessed to call you my sisters.
