I stepped into the co-parenting world in March of 2022, a difficult but necessary shift. There were two main things that I was fearful of upon entering into this chapter of my life:

1.) The guilt I would feel knowing my little boy would have a difficult time with this transition and that I wouldn't always be there to guide him through his pain.

2.) 50% of my child's adolescent years would be lived apart from me.

I had no idea how I was going to manage living in that reality and the pain that came with it. It seemed impossible to me and for over a year I accepted that this was how I would feel forever and that this part of my life simply just "fucking sucked".

And that mentality is where I stayed, some days worse than others. Until, the Christmas season of 2023, the first Christmas I'd spend without my son where I had a lightbulb moment that changed everything for me.

Your reality is based heavily on the mindset that you are living in, and I realized if I ever stood a chance at living in the grief that comes with having to share time with your child, then my mindset would have to shift immediately.