Becoming the Person I Needed

Some stories don’t begin with clarity—they begin with survival.
And some announcements can’t be summed up in a single sentence.

This month, I’m stepping fully into a new chapter of my life:
✨ I’m becoming a full-time certified Peer Recovery Coach and Qualified Behavioral Health Assistant—turning everything I’ve walked through into a path I can walk with others.

It’s not just a role.
It’s a reflection of what I’ve become.
And it’s why I want to share the story behind it.

I didn’t bury my pain. I carried it and kept going.
I kept working, kept smiling, kept showing up—while quietly fighting to believe I was worthy of more.

For years, I repeated patterns that hurt me. I shrunk myself to avoid conflict. I over-explained, over-accommodated, and let people walk all over me to keep the peace.
Not because I was weak—but because I was trying to survive.
Because I believed, somewhere deep down, that maybe if I was small enough, agreeable enough, quiet enough… I’d be safe.
I’d be loved.

But healing asked me to expand.

It asked me to break the cycle.
To choose myself—even when it felt uncomfortable.
To stop watering down my needs and start reclaiming my voice.

That’s where this story really begins.
With a decision.
Not to be perfect. But to become.

I left a toxic work environment in 2022. I quit drinking. I started working on myself not because I hated who I was—but because I believed I deserved a life that felt good. A life that honored everything I’d survived.

And through that, I started to see that what I thought were my flaws—my sensitivity, my intensity, my fire—were actually my gifts.

I used to believe I was bad at communication.
But that belief came from a past where my words were silenced or punished.
Now, I see communication—and the ability to advocate and walk alongside others—as one of my superpowers.
I’m still learning to harness it.
But I’m embracing it fully.

That’s what led me here.

Peer coaching is the natural next step.
It’s where my story and my purpose meet.
Where I get to hold space, build trust, and reflect the light back to people who haven’t seen it in themselves yet.

As I step into this new role, I carry it all with me.
The growth. The grit. The grace.
The girl I used to be—and the woman I’m becoming.

And through it all, I live by this:

I choose authenticity, growth, and grace.
I live in alignment with truth, led by faith, driven by purpose, and anchored in love.
I protect my peace, honor my healing, and rise from every fall with intention.
I walk in integrity, speak with honesty, and show up for others without losing myself.
I make decisions that reflect who I’m becoming, not who I’ve been.

If you’re on your way, too—
I’m cheering you on.

M