Change is scary. Most of the time it involves you leaving a comfort zone and stepping into a situation may be new and unexpected. The uncharted territory causes doubts to surface and butterflies in the tummy. Many people will stay in the safe zone for too long, maybe forever, before leaving (or being shoved out) of the warm and safe cocoon. Shoot, if we had a choice, I bet some of us 30-year-olds would still be in the womb.

I chose to stay in the safety zone, a place I really, really disliked for too long in my marriage. I allowed myself to be disrespected, treated poorly, mistreated and set aside all because it was too comfortable to play the victim and blame someone else – namely, him – for my misery. Then one day, thankfully, I came to my senses (or really was pushed out of the safety zone), picked up what was left of my self-respect and made the change I was so afraid of and never looked back.

In the last five years, I have really worked on not allowing anyone to treat me that way again. I’ve wasted too many years of my life fearful of the unknown and becoming stagnant. I know now that change, though sometimes painful, sometimes really hard, and all the times scary is actually good. It makes the way for something better. I’ve seen it, I’ve lived it, and I’m still here to talk about it. Though, many times (okay, so most of the time) I am still afraid of change, and I probably sit in the safety zone far too long, I look at it like a root canal – it’ll just hurt worse the longer you wait. So, I forge on.

Is it time for a change in your life? It doesn’t need to be big and dramatic (i.e. getting a divorce), it can be something as simple as you deciding to spend more time reading than watching Netflix. It could be you want to start eating less sugar or cutting out sugar altogether. Whatever it is, don’t be afraid of it.

Today embarks another big change in my life. I’ve left the comfort of a job I know for one that is new and exciting and a little scary. It was time for a change.

Don’t be afraid of change. Step forward boldly and embrace it. You’ll be better for it.