On Becoming the Woman I Needed: A Journey from Survival to Thriving

How healing from trauma and reclaiming my power led me to guide and empower other women to rise and thrive

Today, at 46, I strive to be the woman I needed when I was a little girl. There is a certain tenderness in looking back at that curly little blonde kid — so full of dreams, so unaware of the storms that lay ahead. She was innocent, vulnerable, and wide-eyed. She had yet to learn the harsh lessons that life would inevitably teach her.

I often find myself wondering what she really needed back then, what could have made her journey less painful, less lonely. As a woman who has now weathered those sh*tstorms, I am committed to becoming the person she would have looked up to, the resilient woman she desperately needed when the world began to show its darker side.

I remember the first time the world betrayed her innocence. She was just beginning to understand what it meant to be a girl in a world that often saw her as less. She did not yet know that her voice would be silenced, her boundaries crossed, her body treated as something to be owned rather than cherished. She did not know that the men she would encounter — some who seemed trustworthy, others who did not — would wield power in ways that would leave her scarred, not just physically but deep within her soul.

Today, I do know. I know the weight of those experiences, the way they shape you, bend you, but also the way they can forge a strength you never knew you had. Today, I carry that knowledge with me, and I use it to guide my steps as I strive to be the protector, the mentor, the healer that little girl never had.

When I look back on the years that followed — years marked by betrayal, violence, and maybe even fear —, I see a girl who had to grow up too fast. She had to learn to navigate an adult world that was often hostile, to fend for herself in situations where she should have been cared for and protected. She learned to be strong, yes, but at a great cost. She learned to survive, indeed, but survival is not the same as living.

It was not until much later, after enduring perhaps more than any one person should ever have to, that I realized survival was just the first step. The real challenge was learning to thrive. It was learning to heal the deep wounds left by multiple traumas, to reclaim my voice, and to rewrite my story not as a tragedy but as a testament to resilience.

Today, I am that woman who no longer lets her past define her. I am the woman who has faced unimaginable darkness but has chosen to step into the light. I am the woman who has learned that vulnerability is not a weakness, but a profound strength. And in doing so, I have become the woman I wish had been there to hold little Cécile's hand, to tell her she was not alone, to guide her through the fear and the pain with great compassion and appeasing wisdom.

I channel this strength into the work I do now, whether it is through mentoring women who have been silenced for too long, leading conferences on mindfulness and conscious leadership, or creating safe spaces for creative expression through theatre, writing, and photography.

More than ever today, I see my role as a guardian of the stories that need to be told, of the voices that need to be heard. I am committed to helping others find their way back to themselves, to find the strength to not just survive but to live fully and fearlessly.

In the mentoring programs I run, I often see echoes of my younger self in the women who come to me, their eyes filled with the same uncertainty, the same pain, but also with the same spark of hope. I see them as they are — whole, despite the pieces they may feel are missing — and I strive to be the guide I once needed. I want them to know that it is okay to be afraid, that it is okay to feel lost, and that they have within them the power to heal, to grow, and to thrive.

Theatre workshops and creative writing circles have become sacred spaces where stories can be rewritten, where trauma can be transformed into something beautiful and powerful. I have seen firsthand the way these practices can lift the weight of silence and bring light into the darkest corners of the soul. Photography, too, has been a profound tool for healing — capturing not just the physical self, but the essence of the spirit and the strength that lies within each of us.

As I guide others through their own healing journeys, I am constantly reminded of the little girl I once was — the blondinette who needed someone to tell her that she was enough, that she was worthy, that she was powerful beyond measure. And so, I strive to be that voice now, not just for myself, but for every woman who has ever felt broken, who has ever doubted her worth, who has ever questioned her ability to rise.

At 46, I stand as a testament to the power of resilience, to the strength that comes from facing your demons and choosing to fight back. I am the woman I needed when I was a little girl, and in becoming her, I have found a purpose that transcends my pain. I have found a way to turn my scars into stars, to turn my past into a guiding light for others. In doing so, I have found a life that is not just about survival, but about thriving in the most profound, meaningful way.

To all the women reading this, please remember: you are not alone, you are not defined by what has happened to you, and you have within you the power to become the woman you needed when you were a little girl. You have the strength to heal, to grow, and to create a life that is rich with joy, purpose, and fulfillment. You are not just surviving—you are thriving. And in that, there is a power greater than any trauma could ever take from you!

? Step up. Stand out. Thrive. ?

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