I rarely put my private life out there. I am quite a private person, and I also believe that nobody cares. However, this year has been horrible for me and I thought it could be therapeutic to talk about everything that happened this year and end on a positive note, with my plans for an amazing 2022.
The Horrible…
It was around this time last year, just before Christmas 2020 that my mom called me. She had just received her MRI results… They found a tumour in her brain… Just for a little context, my parents are French leaving in Greece and I leave and work in the UK. So through this ordeal, the distance and COVID made this 10 times worse…
I won’t get into details since this is not what this post is about. However, I’m going back and forth on if I want and if it makes sense to share more about this ordeal. If you want to read more about this, either out of curiosity or because it might help you in any way, let me know in the comments below, and I might make a post with the full story.
Anyway, long story short, my mom pasted on May 7.
My dad also scared us 2 months later than he had given up. He wasn’t eating and was drinking all day long. He eventually felt and hit his head. We thought that was it. To a great surprise, after a month and the help of a private caregiver and antidepressant, he made a 180 and was back on his feet.
With my mom passing, it also means that now my dad has only his pension (which is not much) as an income to pay bills, loans, food, the caregiver, and anything else that is needed. So we need to sell an old house back in France, to hope to repay my parents’ loans and keep paying the bills and having someone keep an eye on him.
To top all this, work is being another huge stress factor. During, all this period (apart from 2 weeks for the funeral) I had to keep working. And not only I needed to keep working, but we are close to the end of our project which mean… Mayhem, a lot to do, a lot of stress, and unfortunately the company didn’t seem that the mental health of their employees was a priority. So much, so I had to go to my GP and ask to be signed off for a month, so I don’t collapse.
The Good…
It’s almost the end of the year and things are finally getting a little better.
My dad is doing very well. A carer stays with him around 5 hours a day making sure he takes a shower, eats, takes his medicine and to keep him a little company.
At work, we passed a pretty big delivery for the project and since then, the stress levels have dropped. I also got a raise and a title change that I was chasing for the past years or so.
Mentally, I finally started feeling like myself again. I’m not angry all the time, I feel happier; I started writing again and getting back into blogging and vlogging. Still in a reading slump, though, but I’ll get there.
Now that new year is near, I feel like getting into the “New year, new me” trend and try to make 2022 a great year. So here are some of my 2022 plans.
2022 Plans
- Get married! We were supposed to get married Jun 2021 but between COVID and my mom that got cancel. We are booked for July 2022 so let’s hope COVID will be gone by then.
- Go for a 3 weeks honeymoon in Norway. Again, let’s hope that COVID won’t cancel our plans.
- Organising and cleaning my blogs and posting at least once a week. I already started by splitting my original blog into two:
Travel blog: http://mylifesodyssey.blog
Books and games blog : https://slowreadingbookworm.wordpress.com - Continue creating travel video and grow my YouTube channel : Channel here
- Get back into reading at least 1 book a month
- Promote more self-published and indie SFF authors
- Get back into gaming. I used to love gaming, but my job sucked that love out of me. But I miss it, so I would love to find a little time for it.
- Finish my first draft of my novel by the end of 2022. Would love to post updates on this, but not sure what is worth sharing.
- And work wise? I initially wanted to find a new job. Now I want to see where this new title will bring for me, but you never know….
Those are my hopeful plans for the new year! 2021 Really was my worst year so far, and I truly hope that 2022 will be kinder, not just with me but everyone.
What about you guys? Do you have plans for this new year?
I’m so sorry that this year was so hard for you, Natacha, and that your Mom passed. I appreciate you sharing and hope it was therapeutic for you! And I am sending all of the positive vibes to you that this upcoming year is amazing and kind to you.
Thank you so much for your kind words and for taking the time to read the post. It was actually quite therapeutic. I have another post with all the details of the shit show that when down, but not sure if I should publish it. We’ll see…
Happy new year and I wish you all the best and happiness for the new year!
I completely understand! I just my blog as an outlet in a similar way, sometimes. Do whatever feels the most comfortable for you and whatever you need to help heal!!!
Sending you all of the positive vibes and happiness for the new year!