In the past three months, I have had to make several sacrifices to be with my family. It has not always been easy, but it has been something that I have begun to get more used to and have a distaste for. There are things that just must be in life and as easy as I would like to not have do things that are more challenging, sometimes, you just must push through what is tough and do it anyway.

When my father’s injury first happened, it was late in the day and I was not my best self, but I did what I did because I had to. It was not what I necessarily wanted to do, but my family needed me to use my navigational skills to get them to where they needed to go to see my father. So, I did it and I masked what I was really experiencing at the time. I kept most of my manic energy that I was experiencing at home and not letting anyone know how dangerous I was, because I knew if something would happen, there could be severe consequences.

As things evolved in my father’s care, I was more unwell and others could see it, but I had felt as if I could not take the time to get on track, but I did and eventually things got better. Just one week after getting back on track, I had to sit in the hospital emergency room with my father until about 4:30 AM one Sunday Morning, then go back about five hours later. It was something that I handled well and accompanied my mother because she did not want to go alone. There are things that you just do because they need to be done.

But in those moments, it can be catchy for me to let out my personal frustrations with things in life because I feel as if it is time to do so. However, it is more important to know that I needed to do was asked because my family knows me best and would not ask me unless they knew that they absolutely needed me for certain things. Likewise, it is just as important to remember that my family needs my support and love just as much as they have given me in all my years of living. Theren be hard to do somethings and make personal sacrifices for the needs or desires of my family, but it is sometimes necessary to do it and if there is a healthy family like mine, they will accommodate my needs as they are able to.

There are times when it is not all about me and in those moments with others when I have to make the sacrifices that are necessary to help accomplish things, it is no different, but sometimes, I live in a childish state with my family expecting them to treat me like a child. I would not expect other adults outside the family to treat me as such, so why should I be that way to them? If I were with a colleague or friend and they wanted to stop at a random restaurant to eat and it wasn’t my favorite, would I argue with them like I do with my family when I do not get to pick? I absolutely would not, so what gives me the excuse to continue for the fourth decade to act as if my needs are more important than what their wishes are? Making sacrifices for my family and meeting their wishes and needs is no different than what it would be in any other person that I would comply with their wishes as I do not drive the vehicle and would have to meet their wishes within reasonable circumstances.

I am hoping that going forward that I can work at being better at being kinder to my family when it comes to making sacrifices going forward . They do not deserve the agony and criticism that I give them just because I am unhappy with certain things in my life. I would not act that way towards anyone else and I should treat them just as I would any stranger on the street.

Life is about give and take. Sometimes we have to give energy towards our family because they not only need us but also want our company too and deserve to have us to be there for them when they need us to help them because they know that I am capable of more than I think I am and I need to start showing that I can be strong and successful.