From Survival Mode to Passport Stamps: How I Built a Life I Once Thought Impossible

There are moments in life where you have to stop and consciously notice how far you’ve travelled, not just geographically, but emotionally, financially, and spiritually.

For me, that reflection often happens when Mr M and I are planning our next trip.

Thirteen years ago, when we met, Mr M was already trekking across deserts and mountains, leading expeditions through jungles and remote wilderness. I was entranced by his stories, but they felt like fiction, something magical that belonged to someone else’s life.

Because at that time, my world looked very different.

I was clawing my way out of survival mode after years in abusive relationships.
I’d lost my successful, industry-leading business through internal sabotage.
I’d lost residency of my son – another calculated tactic by my abuser.
I was bankrupt, unemployed, and emotionally exhausted.

Travel?
I couldn’t even see beyond the end of the month, let alone the edges of a map.

And yet, slowly, painfully, stubbornly, things changed.

As my mental health stabilised, as my finances repaired, as I rediscovered my confidence, one holiday turned into two. A camping week with my son became an additional long weekend somewhere new. Eventually, we crossed borders.

India was my personal threshold.
Mr M would have taken me years earlier, but I refused until I could pay my own way.
Years of dependency taught me one lesson: I would never again put myself in a position where I “owed” anyone anything.

And in 2024, with my feet firmly beneath me, I did it.  I paid my own way to India with Mr M.

Now?
Travel has become woven into my life not as escapism, but as expansion.

This year alone I’ll be away every other month:
🚤 A narrowboat trip
🇸🇪 Stockholm with girlfriends
🏞 Weekend walking trips
🌿 Mini UK adventures
🇻🇳 And Vietnam in the summer

Once upon a time, that would have felt unimaginable even laughable.

Today, it is simply what I designed my life to allow.

And that’s the lesson I want to leave you with:

You don’t create your Blockbuster Life by wishing for it.
You build it; one choice, one boundary, one belief, one brave step at a time.

Your vision may look nothing like mine – and it shouldn’t.

But it is possible.
Start where you are.
Decide what matters.
And let the steps carry you to the life you once thought belonged to someone else.

What does your Blockbuster Life include?

If you’d like support uncovering it, Behind the Mask might be your first stepping stone.