jexa, I just wanted to do a bit of cheerleading from the sidelines and say how incredibly well I think you're handling this really difficult time of transition. Perservering with pleasant events can be so challenging when they don't feel 'pleasant' because of low mood and anxiety, and I'm learning a lot from how you are making small adjustments in such a skilful way- like trying a book of short stories when a full book feels too much.

My T and I often draw parallels between building a life worth living (in DBT language) and learning to ride a bike. Sometimes we wobble and topple. Sometimes we get comfortable and then there's a major change like the stablizers coming off (your T leaving?) and it feels like starting all over again, but hopefully you can fall back on all the practice you got while your old T was 'holding' you, and maybe we find that there's something exhilirating about learning to ride on our own.

Sorry if this sounds a bit random- it just struck me because you were talking about using bike rides as a skill