There are times in our lives when circumstances become overwhelming and we need to make a change. Sometimes the change seems sudden, but if we look closely we will see that the discontent has probably been brewing for quite some time and we are seeing the results of seeds planted long ago in our subconscious.

We have often seen people reach their breaking point publicly. Elizabeth Edwards, the wife of former presidential candidate John Edwards, has recently seen the humiliation part of her…all while she was battling cancer. Her husband John now admits to having a child with her mistress. Elizabeth’s sister, Nancy Anania, told People magazine that Elizabeth met the baby and bought little Francis Quinn Christmas presents over the holidays, but apparently the visit was her breaking point. Friends say that the couple has separated.

The rich and famous aren’t the only ones who have to decide where their breaking point is. Anna, a divorced single mother, was a nurse who had toyed with the idea of ​​retirement for years, but it was easier and less scary to continue doing family work than to venture into unfamiliar territory. The main reason for her to stay at the job was gone. Her only child had grown up, but she didn’t know how to get out of the rut she was in. She had been working in a clinic at a large city hospital for 20 years. She still loved working with patients, but she hated how nursing had changed over the years. She believed that now it was more about the bureaucracy than the patients. She felt overworked and underappreciated amid the constant threat of layoffs. Anna worked long hours even though her boss said she couldn’t do overtime. Budget constraints…they told her and she believed them. Sometimes at night, after all the patients and workers had left for the day, she would sit at her desk and get excited about teaching young nursing students at a small university. She had always been good at working with young people and had trained dozens of nurses over the years, some of whom became managers. Then fear would creep in. The “how”, “where” and “when” would get the best of her. She would go home to an empty apartment and a frozen Weight Watchers dinner feeling too exhausted to have a life.

Then one day, a day that wasn’t particularly cloudy or sunny…a day that wasn’t extremely busy or slow at the clinic. It was just a day like so many other days. As he drank his morning coffee with a drop of extra cream and sugar, he had no idea that this would be the day he would reach his limit. Some information unexpectedly fell into her hands that let her know that other nurses were receiving overtime pay while she was not. At first she didn’t believe it. They wouldn’t do something like that, she thought aloud, but before the day was out she was confronted by her supervisor, who confirmed her suspicions. Her supervisor tried to justify it, but by then she Anna had stopped listening. She felt cheated, used. Within days, she began completing her retirement papers and applications to teach at local nursing schools. When she finally walked out the clinic door a few months later, the malice and regret in her heart had lessened. She knew that the decision to retire was not about overtime or who got paid what. She took it as a sign from the creator that it was time to make a change. Anna was glad that she had been open and receptive enough to listen.

What is your breaking point? When do you say “I’ve had enough” and start exploring new possibilities for yourself? Whether it’s a cheating spouse or an unfulfilling job that makes you want to make changes in your life, be open and receptive so that when the time comes you’re ready to put on your walking shoes and take that step into a new future. . .