Everything Happens for a Reason

I know that there are many that do not share this view.  In fact, this whole post came out of a debate with a facebook friend.  If you have stories either way, I’d love to hear them.  Comment on here or send me a message at WLNutjob@gmail.com.  However,my thoughts are that maybe this was God's plan, or Karma, or "Everything happens for a reason", but I cannot believe that things didn't just unfold this way out of coincidence.

Bad thing: My daughter's being born at 29 weeks and my mental health issues starting:  Good thing - we were able to get her all the kinds of help she needed because of her diagnoses, and having the breakdown led me to quit my teaching job and complete my MA.  This led to me becoming a nanny for a family in which the father was a well-known lawyer (now judge).  His law firm hired my husband, which got him to go to law school.  Our move got me my position as a elementary guidance counselor - which I LOVED. 

Bad thing: Losing my job as school counselor : I was able to go on bed rest until my youngest was born, then I was able to stay home with her for her first year of life and my older daughter's first year of preschool.

Bad Thing: Second daughter born a preemie.  Again, she had issues that needed special attention, which we qualified for because of her preemie status.  I also was properly diagnosed post-partum as having Bi-Polar disorder, as well as a few more diagnoses.

Bad thing: Moving away from my family to teach, then losing my job because of a breakdown.  Okay, this one is a  bit more far fetched but follow me - In 2007, I was highly overmedicated and not functioning well.  Moving away from my husband really see how poorly I was doing.  Yes, almost having a suicide attempt sucked, but I was taken care of by doctors that knew how to handle me and my diagnoses.  They started me on the meds I am now, and now I am doing very well!  I was also awarded with SSDI, which allows me to not have the stress of working outside the home so I am better able to function as a "homemaker" (except for the activities that I choose to volunteer for - which are things that I can un-volunteer for if things become too hard).

Bad Thing:  having to move into my parents' house and being away from my husband and children.  Being at my parents' house for 6 months after being released from the hospital gave me time to recover and to see what I wanted my family and marriage to look like.  When I moved back in with them at my in-laws, my husband and I went to therapy together and I received excellent services through the Northern Lakes MI CMH that let me develop myself as a PERSON with mental illness not a "bi-polar".  To be honest, the Northern Lakes MI CMH is one of the most progressive in the state and I entered a "recovery" state.

Bad Thing:  My husband deciding not to go into law after law school.  While I did not understand this at first, it really opened us up to new possibilities.  This is how he found his career with the government.  He is paid an awful lot for just being on the job 1 year, he is home at 5 every day, he's happy with his career, and we have a terrific life out here in Nebraska.  Friends of his that are making twice more at large law firms work twice the amount of hours and do not have free time.  In fact, when you figure what the salary is "per hour" worked, my husband comes out on top of many of them.