20 years ago, I participated in a coaching class sponsored by my company, IBM. Within 15 minutes, I was hooked. The focus on individuals being whole, not broken needing to be fixed was a revelation. The possibilities for changing, growing, playing the Bigger Game (include TM) completely captivated me. From that first class experience I decided I wanted to be coach.
Then life happened, I had two sons 18 months apart. My role at IBM expanded and the responsibilities at work, left little time for becoming certified and starting my own business.
In 2010, I had nervous breakdown brought on by years of saying yes to everyone except myself. If there was a task to be done at work, project at home, teaching confirmation classes, I said yes. More than a decade of not enough sleep and zero boundaries left me unable to eat (I lost 20 pounds in 3 weeks), sleep and at the worst I could not speak. My husband finally said “that’s it we are going to the emergency room.” The in-take nurse asked me why I was there. I said, “I wish I would get a disease so someone would take care of me.” When I heard myself say those words, I realized that something had to change, fast.
Within 24 hours, I had asked for and received a 30 day leave of absence from my job. I started going to therapy weekly and began taking medication. The first week, I slept and slept. My mom came to stay with us, and she cooked delicious healthy meals, made sure I got to my appointments and made sure I napped. After a couple of weeks, I felt so much better. I understood clearly that the only person who could take care of me long term, was me. If I didn’t advocate for myself, no one else would.
In 2016, I was diagnosed with stage 2 Ovarian Cancer. I had a complete hysterectomy and 18 chemo treatments over 6 months. Because I have the BRCA2 gene my likelihood of getting breast cancer was 87% so I opted for a double mastectomy and reconstruction. For 2 ½ years, I was a patient. I slept, ate, went to Dr appointments and not much else. My hair fell out, my body was scarred and bloated, my energy level was non-existent. For a long time, I thought that I would feel this way forever. I didn’t.
In 2019, I was feeling healthy, and it was finally time to make my coaching dream a reality. I enrolled in the Institute for Integrative Nutrition and after a year of study and practice became a certified health coach at age 54. I learned that health goes beyond weight, normal blood sugar or cardiovascular performance. Health involves joy, movement, positive relationships, purpose, curiousity, and delicious food. Eating veggies won’t do anything if you are miserable in your relationships.
So here I am in 2021 launching Susan Wallace Coaching; taking all my experience, learning and skills to help women become architects of their own lives, uncover their true desires, and develop an action plan to make those desires a reality. If this sounds interesting to you, take the first step and schedule 30 minutes with me here.
