Shortly after I started writing my book (“Loving the Pregnant You” which is in the editing phase and WILL be published this summer), I got pregnant with my second child. This was such a gift for me on so many levels. Obviously, I was blessed with another child. And, as I continued to embark on the journey of writing this book about being pregnant, I would be pregnant. I was excited by what I had created: a project that would inspire me and hold me accountable for walking my talk.
I couldn’t be writing a book about loving the pregnant version of ourselves if I was complaining and looking for trouble. I had created for myself the experience that I envisioned for my readers. I would get to hear about other women’s experiences and learn what kinds of empowered choices they made for themselves. I’d see what approaches worked for them. I’d have the opportunity to be inspired by how they were dealing with their thoughts and feelings and circumstances. By hearing their pregnancy and childbirth stories, I could discover and create my own story. It was a test-run of how the book would “work.”
And, I did find that there were concrete ideas and moments of inspiration that altered the course of my pregnancy as I captured the stories women shared with me. I thought about choices such as how I wanted to memorialize my pregnancy (without pressuring myself to create an elaborate scrapbook) and how open I was to inducing labor past my due date, that I don’t think I would’ve considered so intentionally if I hadn’t been listening to others’ accounts of similar inquiries. I heard about significant challenges women faced and I was reminded to appreciate every aspect that was flowing easily for me and to identify what mindsets and actions would work best for me in the face of any difficulties. By understanding the pregnant women that they were, I discovered more about the pregnant woman I wanted to be.
I created a “structure” for myself that would help hold me accountable to the commitment I had made: to enjoy my pregnancy to the best of my ability. I’d found a fun, productive, lovely, empowering way to make myself walk my talk!
Please join the conversation: How have you made yourself walk your talk?
