The hardest part of a comeback is the middle, when nobody’s cheering yet and the old you isn’t back.

The middle of a comeback has none of the attention of the start and none of the payoff of the finish. The early sympathy has gone, nobody asks how it is going, and you are still far enough from your old self that the work shows no visible result. That is the stretch where most people quietly stop.

Plan for the middle specifically, since that is the part needing support rather than the dramatic beginning. Find one person who will ask about it in six weeks, and tell them to. Keep a record of small markers, so there is evidence of movement when nothing feels like it is moving.