Now that I am through the darkness, have tamed the dragons and calmed the twins I have to tell you something important.  The how.  This is something I have selfishly kept to myself until now.  I was recently (and rightfully) chastised by a friend for not sharing it.  Here are the three things that have made my recovery possible.

God and My Savior

These are two who have carried me, supported me and kept me company through all I’ve been through.  My faith in God and the Atonement of his Son have been the rock that I anchored myself to during the hurricane of my life.  I know they are real personages.  I have felt their arms around me during the darkest and most painful times in my life.

My knees have become calloused from kneeling and begging for help.  My heart was filled with love when I thought all hope was gone.  They provided a candle in that cold, heavy and complete darkness that constantly threatened to consumed me.

My Family

I have a very large and close-knit family:  2 parents, 8 siblings, 5 in-laws, 6 children, 4 children-in-law, 36 nieces and nephews (plus 5 spouses), 6 grandchildren and 8 great-nieces/nephews.  While there are a few who live on the fringes of the family for reasons of their own, most of us spend time together as much as possible.  While I have been the source of several family legends & a lot of drama, they have been very supportive.

A few of the children.

They have gotten to know my dragons well, though mostly through the damage they have caused.  They have lived with the twins.  Sometimes they have looked at me, rolled their eyes and said, “Get a grip.”  No offense taken on either side.  It has taken some a long time to understand that I really don’t do this because I like drama.  Their patience and frustration, support and chastising, love and teasing have gotten me through some very difficult times.  I will always be very grateful for their chaotic, irritating, fun, loving and constant presence in my life.

Eleviv

What is this?  This is a miraculous combination of nature and science.  Without it I would not have been able to come through everything even close to whole.  It came into my life at a time when I wasn’t sure if I could continue fighting and provided a most unexpected miracle.

Eleviv is a carefully concocted combination of  natural botanicals.  It was created by a nutritional biochemist, who enjoys extreme sports, to support the mind and body during the stress of training and competing.  It was discovered that it was also very helpful to people feeling stressed and overwhelmed with life.

My Eleviv story is what I am going to talk about in my next series of posts.  You may wonder how much of a difference this has made in my life, but the results are undeniable.  My mother has threatened to kill me if I stop taking it.  When I have run out in the past, both friends and family have gone out of their way to make sure I had what I needed.  Last year during our annual camping trip I left without my Eleviv and medications.  I called my niece who was coming past my home on her way and asked her to pick them up as a favor to me.  Her response, “Absolutely!  I will do us all a favor.”