The Power of The Blog!!

When I started writing my blog very early on in my surrogate pregnancy, I never knew it would turn out the way it did.  Heck, I didn't even think I would continue writing after the first 2 posts.

My husband overly encouraged me (like he does with a lot of things) to start blogging about my feelings and the process of being a surrogate.  At first when he suggested it, I said "What the hell is a blog?!?"  Of course I kind of had an idea, but I really only thought a certain group of people actually blogged; journalists, scholars, sport reporters, Julia and Julia, etc.  After he set it all up for me, design and everything (that is what I mean by "overly"=), I then asked, "Who is really going to read this?!"  Well, he told me that it didn't matter and that maybe doing this will help someone else out there in the surrogate world...


Boy was he right (and I don't say that very much)!  Not only did I find out that there were hundreds of blogs related to surrogacy, but I also realized that people liked to read mine.  At the beginning of the pregnancy, I was blogging about all of the emotions I was dealing with, most of which were bottled up.  It was a great way to express myself and an even better way for the people around me to get the idea of what I was going through without having to pry it out of me.  At times, it was a little difficult for my IP's to read (it can be a hard reality when faced with the fact that your surrogate is experiencing deep depression).  But, I would have to say, that without my blog, my IP's probably would have been left in the dark most of the time because expressing my feelings face to face was impossible for me to do in my state of mind.

It wasn't until after my pregnancy did I realize that my blog had an effect on other people.  I never looked at it that way; I always saw my blog as a means of reaching out for support and my followers encouraged me every moment that I needed it.  But, it was an amazing feeling once I began guiding others through similar situations; whether it be surrogates, IP's, or family members of someone involved with surrogacy.  It is a much different feeling when you are seeing things from the other side (much easier too =).

People started to reach out to me, and most of the time I never knew they were a follower of my blog.  I think I get contacted every few weeks with someone with a very similar situation, and some have very interesting stories!!  Oh, and most of the surrogates and IP's that contact me all have one big thing in common... triplets!!!  If you haven't experienced this then you really have no idea how hard it is.  Yes, you can read our thoughts and emotions as we are experiencing them, but you honestly can't even imagine what a roller coaster it can be.  I remember back when I found out I was pregnant with triplets.  A retired surrogate who carried triplets reached out to me and answered the questions I had-  At the beginning, I really didn't know what I was in for and I was really in denial (which a lot of women do in the beginning).  She broke it down for me and gave me a reality check that I will never forget.... "Those were the worst days of my life. I wanted nothing more than to just slip into a coma and not wake up until the babies were born.  All joking aside, I really wanted to die."  At first I thought this lady was crazy and very morbid, but hell, that was an understatement!!!  LOL!!

So, lately I feel really encouraged to blog more.  I have lots of advice for the IP's out there dealing with all sorts of situations.  I also have never ending supportive topics for the surrogates.  If any of you have a personal question or comment, my email address is always available and it is my pleasure to help out.  If I were rich, I would travel all over the world and meet with people in need of encouraging and support, but heck, if I were rich I would do A LOT of things =)

And some amazing stats on the views on my blog...

United States      23,238

Canada                    2,234

Australia                     623

Germany                    442

United Kingdom        339

Norway                        268

Taiwan                           84

Ireland                            75

New Zealand                64

Israel                               63