F, glad your recovery is going well! It sounds like you're in a good place regarding your sitch too, and that's great to see!
Regarding how R starts, well I wish I could tell you from personal experience but I can't. But I have read quite a few R stories and surprisingly it usually happens rather quickly, almost like a reverse BD. The WAS often asks to talk, and that initiates a conversation that lasts hours and covers all kinds of ground. If you ever get to that point it's important not to rush into anything, she's STILL a WAW and at that time will still have done ZERO work on herself. So here you are a changed man, having made an incredibly lengthy and strenuous journey, and you're dealing with the exact same W as before. Many LBS's become disillusioned when piecing starts because they expect their WAS to be as changed as they are and ready to start a new and improved life together. But the WAS is still carrying all the same old baggage and struggling with the same old demons. Their journey is just beginning at the start of piecing. Those who go through piecing say it's much harder work than DB'ing, and I believe it. At least in DB'ing you're only dealing with yourself and you've got 100% control!
It doesn't always happen this way, one of my buddies didn't hardly talk to his WAW for over a year and then they started going out to meals just as friends, then became friends with benefits, then fell back in love. It's been a very slow process for them.
