13 March 2011
When I put the necklace on today, I thought of all of the things that women undergoing fertility treatment endure. It got me thinking what if we had an IF Bravery Bead Program and added a bead to our necklaces for every visit, procedure, injection, or blood test?
Here is a possible legend:
Red bead -blood draw
Pink bead -vitamin swallowing
Blue bead -oral med eg: Estrace
White bead -prometrium insertion
Clear colourless bead -injection
Black and white polka dot bead -u/s wanding
Long skinny tubular bead -IUI/ embryo transfer
Swirly psychedelic tie dye bead -egg retrieval
Star pattern bead -painful test/ surgical procedure
Yellow bead -POAS
What would my necklace look like? How would it represent my story? I think I’d be nearly tipping over from the weight of all the beads around my neck. Maybe that’s why I feel so tired sometimes I'm carrying around all these darn beads. But seriously, we all have colourful histories and stories to tell that shape how we live our lives. Kudos to all of us for our endurance and bravery.
They had better be small beads....otherwise some of us would be dragging our necks and necklaces on the ground!!-kj
ReplyDeletekjbabies, 13 March 2011 - 05:30 PM
I love your blogs by the wayBut I actually started stringing my beads 4 years ago. My legend is eerily similar to yours. Different color beads and different shape beads, meaning everything you mentioned. I even used silver beads with letters to spell our ER or ET or FET. I started my 'necklace' on a 6 ft long leather cord and thought, "What the he** am I gonna do with all this cord?" No word of a lie my last bead for my prometrium after my BFP (my prometrium only earned 1 bead for 5 days worth) was at the VERY end of the cord. It was very symbolic...But that is 6 feet worth of beads!!!!I treasure my beads, they now live displayed in a shadow box, hanging proudly on my bedrrom wall. I don't think anyone else really gets what they mean, but I look at them and am amazed at all I've gone through.To everyone still earning your beads, hold your head high!!!Vanna
Yogamum, 13 March 2011 - 07:05 PM
That is really cool that you actually strung all those beads!
silverdollar, 13 March 2011 - 07:39 PM
Wishing I could hand over my bead necklace for a diamond one...my beads are worth about that much!! LOL...great post and great idea!
LisainSK, 13 March 2011 - 08:05 PM
That's a lovely idea. My vote: the long tubular bead should represent u/s wanding!
Erin_G, 14 March 2011 - 05:37 AM
That is a really cute idea!
sweetestdream, 14 March 2011 - 07:34 AM
I love this idea. My nephew is a Sick Kids kid and his bravery beads are his most treasured possession 9 years later. I usually treat myself to something new after "icky" procedures, but after a while I forget my excuse for shopping. This has significance & would have me stop buying things I don't need. After all, that money could be put towards my meds!
AnnieT, 14 March 2011 - 12:04 PM
This is a really neat idea! As usual, thanks for sharing SD. :Emoticons09710:
LMC, 14 March 2011 - 01:06 PM