Who I Am

Hello, my name is Susannah (she/her) and let me tell you a bit about me. It is hard to know where to begin so let’s start with interests. I enjoy baking, cooking, reading, photography, true crime, and travel. I am a furbaby owner, 2 cats (Dewy and Clover) and 1 dog (Bugsy) all girls and they have trained me to meet their needs very well. 

I come from a large family. I have 4 sisters and 4 brothers and I’m in the middle of all of this. It is a blended family, meaning we do not all share the same parents. I am a product of two divorces and this for sure has played a role in who I am as a person. I grew up in an emotional abusive home. I never spoke about this as a kid. This was just what happened in my home and it never seemed like something those outside of it should know.

 I did not realize how the way I grew up played a role in forming who I would become as a person. I had people along the way that would tell me was a good person bound for great things, a sixth-grade teacher once said I would be the president and she would be voting for me, my aunt said I would be the next Oprah (though can anyone really be that?). This left me wondering what they saw in me that would make them think I was bound for do good things. What I take from it now is I was meant to be a helper.

 What do I mean by a helper? The reason I like being a life coach is it is not about me telling you what to do with your life. It is you and I taking a journey together while you explore your needs and how you can get to where you want to be. I hold the space for you. I reflect back to you. I ask questions to help you dig a little deeper to see what is possible. You do the work. I am the helper planting seeds with you to grow. 

Education

My education I believe has been laying the foundation to get me to be a life coach. I have my BA in Journalism (never used it), and my MA in Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT) with a specialization in Trauma. My BA has help me to master listening carefully, to listen to not just what is being said but what is under what is being said. My MA has given me the training to use skills to help others. To have better insight as to why some things may be causing difficulties in their life.

In March 2020 I began the JRNI life coaching program to become a certified coach their their program. This training helped me to see the potential as a coach to be able to help people go from where they are currently at and achieve goals in their life. I am also a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT). However, I will not be coming into our work together as your therapist. There may be times where I might put my therapist hat on to provide some information about why past trauma, anxiety, depression other other mental health concerns may be affecting your progress. If therapy is needed then we will discuss that and how to find one to add into your journey.

What it is like to work with me

In our time together we will focus on a goal you want to achieve. We will look at three main things: Where do you want to be? What gets in the way? and How do you get there?

By going through these three questions we will take a journey together to lay the foundation to start making your goal a reality. My role in this process is to hold the space for you. I ask questions to help gain insight. I am like a mirror reflecting back to you. It is powerful to verbalize your thoughts, fears, and the deep unknown or the known thoughts that are too scary to say out loud.

I should mention I tend to use humor and metaphors to help provide further insight into things. I will not claim to know everything and will allow you to be the one to educate me about who you are as a person. We will dive deep into you to help gain further understanding of what is holding you back. We will take action steps to make progress towards your goal. Once you have achieved your goal we will discuss ending services and make sure you are ready to keep moving forward.