I am allowed to grieve the life I thought I would have.

Finding peace with the dreams that didn't come true while embracing the beauty of what actually is.

Dr. Tamara Lapsley, MEP, PMP

Director of Travel Operations

National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)

I Am Allowed to Grieve the Life I Thought I Would Have

Whew. That one is sitting with me.

Because grief isn't always about losing a person.

• Sometimes you grieve the life you pictured.
• The marriage you thought would last.
• The family you thought would look different.
• The career you thought you'd have.
• The relationships you thought would never change.
• The years you wish you could get back.
• The version of you that you thought you'd become.

And here's what I'm learning:

I can be grateful for my life today and still grieve what didn't happen.

Those feelings don't cancel each other out.

Grieving what could have been doesn't mean I don't appreciate what is. It means I'm human.

Some dreams don't come true the way we imagined them. Some chapters end before we're ready. And sometimes, life takes us somewhere we never would have chosen for ourselves.

But maybe acceptance isn't pretending it didn't hurt. Maybe acceptance is finally being able to say:

"That wasn't the life I planned... but I'm still allowed to create something beautiful from the life that's in front of me."

So today, I'm giving myself permission to grieve what wasn't...

while still making room for what can be. ❤️

Can anybody else relate?

#Grief #LifeTransitions #StartingOver #SecondAct #WomenSupportingWomen #LifeAfterLoss #ElegantCoaching #DRT