Learning to Trust in Someone Else

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Believing in and trusting someone else has been one of the greatest challenges of my life. I have always struggled to believe in my own power to find the best life for myself, so trusting in others has been even more difficult.

I gave up early trusting in others. After my first genuine belief in love failed miserably at age 24, I gave up. I felt like it was all up to me to make my life meaningful, and I wasn’t going to let anyone else in.

That “worked” for a number of years, until I realized just how lonely and afraid I was. A compassionate counselor helped me see that I needed to try again to believe in the kindness of others, but it would be years before I found someone worthy of this faith. Trial and error dominated my 30s and 40s.

Finally at age 49, after decades of struggle, I found someone smart enough and compassionate enough to earn my faith, but you can imagine my difficulties in believing in him after so many years of not trusting.

Even today, over ten years after we met, I struggle daily to trust in his vision and expertise as we build a house together. Should I do as he suggests or not?

Trusting in others is my daily challenge. How about you?

Laura Lee Carter, MA Counseling Psychology, the writer behind the popular online blog How to Believe in Love Again, has been helping others turn midlife difficulties into opportunities for personal change since 2007. Besides working as a psychotherapist, Laura Lee has authored a number of books and e-books on midlife transformation.  Don’t miss her new book: Find Your Reason to Be Here: The Search for Meaning in Midlife. Follow her on Twitter: @midlifequeen.