Posts by Suzanne Sawyer-Espinoza

This picture was taken a few weeks ago after an especially hard crying session. When I look at that photo now, I can't help feeling a sort of pride for how far I know I have come throughout this journey, especially recently. I have wanted all along to be "strong," yet still had so many nights feeling alone with my pain that I tried to hide the…

Lots of different thoughts a swirlin' here. Shall we see where they lead? You know, I really am a fundamentally happy, optimistic, hopeful person by nature (especially without the interference of anxiety or depression), even amidst the grief and trauma responses I've been working through this past year. I really do love life, even with all of the demands and exhaustion and challenges there have been. Truly,…

I've mentioned a few times how shy or reserved I used to be. While there's no question I am more outgoing and self-confident than I was as a child, I think a more accurate description would be that I have always been an extrovert, just one who used to have really bad social anxiety. I have ALWAYS needed interactions and connections with other people to help me…

I have a bit of a love hate relationship with the mail now. Take today, for instance. I got a birthday card with a lovely message from a friend. Loved that. I also got an unexpected medical bill for Kendall for nearly $5,000 (yes, that is my portion). I have no idea how long those will keep trickling in (years?), so it doesn't feel like I can…

I had a discussion with my book club about talents the other day that has really had me thinking. As a society we tend to emphasize showy talents, like those we've seen demonstrated during the Olympics, or famous musicians, or amazing artistic talent. And yes, those are talents worth celebrating. But I think that too often we tend to overlook what our own talents are. It can…

Today seemed like it would be a formula for having a very difficult day. It started with an early EMDR session (and exactly one year ago today was one of the worst days, for many reasons), after which I immediately left to attend a funeral. Not only was it my first LDS funeral since Kendall's (I'm afraid I haven't been able to muster up the courage before…

I've alluded to the fact that January 21 - March 24 were going to be, or have been, (and certainly currently are) incredibly difficult for me. For whatever reason, the way my brain has decided to make sense of what occurred during Kendall's illness, to grapple with some of those horrific experiences, has been to closely tie everything to the dates when they originally occurred. There have…

I mentioned in a previous post that I still struggle with focusing to read for pleasure (except, funny enough, those letters and journal entries from when I was in college). Even watching TV feels hard now. The same applies to listening to things that require my careful attention, like audio books or podcasts (yes, I've tried - although I've noticed that things like that are slowly getting…

Yes, I felt very loved today. :)

I am completely on board with the idea of embracing my current life circumstances, or what the future may hold, intentionally trying to embrace my role as a parent, my job, etc. (I even have a few "Embrace" signs around my house to remind me - the one in this picture is in my clinic.) I have not, however, yet figured out what it means, or exactly…