A couple of months ago I made the somewhat impulsive decision to abandon my comfortable life and move to New York City. Well, it wasn’t that impulsive. For the past two years, I’ve dreamed of moving to New York, but in my mind it was just that–a dream. I remember a friend saying, “If you want it badly enough, you’ll make it happen,” and I was like right. Fuck you. Why don’t you tell me to “manifest it?”
I didn’t want to let myself believe the idea that I could actually “make it happen,” because that left me feeling vulnerable. If I let myself believe I could actually get there, I risked feeling shame if I didn’t succeed.
But I did get there. I got offered a (legal!) job while visiting a friend whose company I write for, and knew I had to take it.
So I flew back home to Vancouver and told my boyfriend, colleagues, friends, clients, soccer team, and family I was leaving. They threw their respective tantrums or gave me their respective high fives, while I sold my car and purged my closet.
You’ve heard a tale like this before–where the protagonist gives up the corporate job and becomes a yoga teacher or travels the world. Best decision ever. End of story.
I thought the intention behind my move was something like that. “I’m so comfortable here with my job and social support and certainty,” I kept telling everyone. “I want to keep growing. I want to feel lonely and challenged.”
In part, this was true. I’m always going off about stepping out your comfort zone and exposing yourself to difficult feelings, and I’ve definitely felt some of those difficult feelings since being here (Amusing sidebar: in the middle of the night before my first day at my new job, I walked into to the wall on my way to the bathroom and cut up my face. Great first impression haha. Less Amusing sidebar: I’ve had 2 pretty full-fledged crying sessions, and I’m realizing my relationship may not survive the distance).
But there’s a whole other demon I’ve unveiled in the shift. Let me explain:
See, I’ve always attempted to advocate against blindly living for socially constructed milestones. I’ve written loads on how the dominant narratives in our media and society suggest we should graduate high school then go to college then go to grad school then find a well-paying, stable career and be in a relationship and be fit then get married (and not divorced) then buy a house then have and raise healthy, agreeable children until college then retire then travel then die a peaceful death.
And the whole time I’ve tried to expose these ingrained, external markers of a “good life,”warning of their dangers, I’ve followed them. Not entirely because I’ve felt I should (at least, that’s what I’m telling myself); rather, because it’s just so happened that becoming a therapist–which has always been my path–involved grad school and resulted in a stable career.
But the clarity in my path ended there. I didn’t have goals after settling into a fulfilling, father-approved career. I was (and still am) on the fence about marriage, kids, and a mortgage. I didn’t have intentions to pursue a PhD anytime soon. And so, unsurprisingly, 4 years out of grad school, I felt restless and absolutely fucking panicked at the thought of domesticating.
When the New York opportunity arose, I saw it as the answer to my existential anxiety. Empowering, yes; a writer’s dream, yes; but more significantly something to cling to. Something else to look toward, so I could avoid those feelings of inadequacy that bubble up to the surface when not suppressed by a future focus. Long work hours and new challenges and all the distractions possible to keep restlessness at bay. A narrative with a less predictable plot. And thus less expectations to potentially not meet.
And so here I am in this new, lively, exciting (mother-of-god cold!) city. It feels like it’s the perfect antidote for my previous discomfort–no room for boredom here 🙂 ! But I also now have a sobering understanding that this adventure might be camouflaging a sense of mediocracy I’ve so wholeheartedly tried to embrace. And that’s unnerving.
My instinct, upon realizing this life revamp may in fact be another goal to focus on (and in turn dampen the deeper feelings), is, ironically, to make more goals! Reach a greater audience! Meet Taylor Swift! Find a way to change the world!
Yet I know myself well enough by now to refrain from that control and certainty-seeking goal-setting, and instead to make space for the discomfort; to remember that all we have is this moment, and that “fully living” is about actually experiencing that continuously in-flux awareness–not trying to determine which measurable “successes” are of most value in life.
So my message to you (but more to me, haha) is this: It’s OK to not have clarity. It’s OK to not know what you want out of life, or to not feel fulfilled by what we’re told will make us happy. It’s OK to be conflicted, frustrated, ashamed, defeated, uncertain, and scared. I’m many of those right now (amidst many positive feelings as well), and it’s wondrously liberating to permit it all. Be kind to yourself. Know you’re not alone in whatever you’re experiencing. Know this is living, not always resting your sights on the next task or traditional milestone to accomplish. I’m right here, living it all with you. We’re all in this together <3.
Love it x
Toby Morrison ||Director|| http://www.cfshealth.com
>
LikeLike
Thanks, Toby! xx
LikeLike
All so true..narratives are never sraightforward and uncertainty is part of the package…something I am only truly getting to grips with now myself. Great post!
LikeLike
Thanks for reading, Monster Mermaid :)!
LikeLike
Wow! I can relate to EVERTHING you said. I tried all the ‘traditional’ stuff and for the most part it left me so unhappy. I too moved to NYC after my divorce and finally selling our house which was my dream as well and had this utter breakdown moment when I got here like, ‘now what?!?’ I’m in the same spot of just being in the moment and leaving space for life and fate to surprise me… And resisting the urge to freak out over being single and rush back for my doctorate! Good luck!! And yes, we are all in this together! Thank you for your blog!!
LikeLike
Aww thank you for sharing your experience, Emily! It’s so heartwarming to have confirmation that we’re not alone in this complex journey of introspection (and living). xx good luck to you too, and thank you for reading!! ❤
LikeLike
welcome to NYC Megan! It’s nice for me to know you are out there in the city where I live. You will learn a very great deal, about yourself and the charms of humanity. I love your blog, it has been very helpful to me in a number of ways, including pointing me towards the concept of self-compassion, which i really needed. I am happy to know you are bopping around this very city somewhere. Enjoy every moment you can.
LikeLike
Aww thank you for the welcome, Vharmon!!! I feel so encouraged and supported by your kind comment <3. I have no doubt my experience in this city will be both challenging and growth-inspiring (are they ever mutually-exclusive?). I'm trying my best to savor all the moments–whether they be exciting, trepidatious, lonely, etc., rather than being swept away by the thoughts that accompany them! Thank you again for making me feel so welcome and connected in this incredible city xx 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Megan – thank you for this! It is so relevant. “Conflicted, frustrated, ashamed, defeated, uncertain, and scared” – that just about sums it up. Good to know I’m not alone. It is so hard to feel like you are doing what “you are supposed to be doing” whether it is your career or relationships or anything. Some seem to find their purpose, their passion, their soulmate and get to enjoy these loves. And then there are the rest of us… But, I guess there is comfort in knowing it doesn’t happen for all and many continually struggle to find the peace of being in the right place, doing the right thing with the right person… I hope to get closer to this some day.
LikeLike
Thanks so much for your comment, Fazborg <3. It's wonderfully comforting for me to reads words like this, as it reminds me again and again that we all struggle with this stuff. Be kind to yourself, try to let go of the need to "find the peace" (easier said than done, I'm learning), and drink in the moment. Thanks for reading xx 🙂
LikeLike
Looking forward to your next article!
LikeLike
Thanks for your support, Shannon! I promise to get something fresh up on the blog soon :).
LikeLike
Awesome stuff…very, very awesome. I would look forward to reading about self compassion once we decide to take steps that scare us or steps that weren’t necessarily “planned”, but just fate. Like you, I recently took up an offer for a new job in a new city. I’m terrified, but I know it will change my life forever. Everyday I have to remind myself that the lump in my throat is not a tumor, but physical signs of being out of my comfort zone.
LikeLike
I am so glad and grateful you made this move out of comfort zone to join us here in NYC! Thank you!
LikeLike
I’m so glad I did, too, Wicky! Thank you for reading and for all your support <3!
LikeLike
Megan, you are marvelously open in expressing what you are experiencing and how you feel about it. Clearly, you already know that changing where we live or work or who we hang out with can be a way to hide from ourselves, or a path to deeper understanding of who we are now.
My mantra for many years: start where you are. Lots of layers there, as it can mean location or emotional state or level of self-awareness (or a hundred other life facets). The point is the same.
Since today is the first day I knew you existed, Megan, I delight in the many stories you have told that I have yet to read. For that, I thank you wholeheartedly.
LikeLike
Haha! Om my god that first paragraph! I swear I hear that phrase daily, “If you want it bad enough…”. I’ve actually just stopped telling people what I want to do because I’m sick of all the crap that goes with it.
BTW, I just found your blog, good stuff 😉
LikeLike
Thanks so much, Adventroverted! ❤
LikeLike