Speaking up was the turn. It wasn’t the finish line. I used to think that once the words were out — once I’d finally said what happened, once other women stood up behind me — the hardest part was over. I thought courage was the whole story. It wasn’t. Courage got me out of the silence. It didn’t get me through what came after. Healing had its own timeline — one that didn’t care how brave I’d already been. It asked something different of me: Rebuilding. Relearning. A decision-making process. It looks slightly different depending on your unique circumstances, but I’ve found it helpful to name it, so you can recognize it and put it into practice wherever you need it. Solitude; time alone, either early in the morning or later in the evening — became part of it. That required time management and self-discipline: setting aside the time, then actually inspecting the areas........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)