You really made me think. Thanks.

I never thought about it before but confidence has been THE issue in my life. (Why have I not realized this before??) Not the types you suggested, though. Mine was confidence in my abilities to learn and then put that knowledge into practice. I was really good at that. I knew that no matter what obstacle was in my way, I could overcome it. An obstacle was merely a test of my abilities. And it was always fun for me to figure out ways to overcome them. Those abilities made my career hugely successful and, therefore, enjoyable for me (and those around me).

Both before and after my career, I now realize that certain external influences from other people caused my confidence in those abilities to waver. As the influences continued and/or became greater, my confidence in my ability to get things done eventually crumbled and was gone. Those were, and still are, my problem times.

Once that confidence is gone, it's tremendously difficult to get it back. It's not knowing where to start to pick up the pieces and then not being sure how they fit together.

In my life, I have one last obstacle to overcome and then I feel (but don't know for sure) that I will have finished putting the pieces back together properly. But I definitely lack the confidence to make that move. Even if I ever did, I know that I will never have the level of self-confidence I used to have; but I do know I will be able to enjoy my life again. Right now, that's all that matters to me.