Change Your Perspective & Experience Personal Growth

Uchenna "Dr. Lulu?” Umeh NGLCC Certified is a retired Pediatrician, coach, author, public speaker, mother and LGBTQ+ activist. Since she was a child she had been saying that some day she would be interviewed by Oprah Winfrey and a few years ago her dream came true. Dr. Lulu has also been a TEDx speaker and has spoken all over the world to shine light on her causes in hopes of spreading awareness and informing her audiences. Her growth story began at the age of sixteen when she came to her parents letting them know she had an attraction to other girls. Her father dismissed it saying it was a phase and something she would grow out of. However, she never did because for her it was not a phase, this is something that was real and she went on for years before being able to fully explore her sexuality. At the age of thirty nine she decided to explore her attraction to women and uses her experiences to help other parents and families in similar situations with their children.

"As a coach, I have learned that belief is an entity that occurs as a result of thoughts." -Dr. Lulu

Our thoughts, our parents beliefs, culture and how we were raised all work to influence the way we think and perceive our realities. After several years of dealing with an abusive marriage she decided that it was time to explore her attraction to women and let herself be free with her sexuality. During this time her first born child who was assigned male at birth came out as transgender. Even though Dr. Lulu was accepting her sexuality and thought she had an open mind towards the LGBTQ cause she dismissed it when her child came to her as a phase, similar to how her father perceived what she was going through all those years before. Even as a queer person herself she lived in a country that is intensely homophobic. In her mind as a parent, she thought she was protecting her child, she compares this to cognitive dissonance. Cognitive dissonance is where your mind is saying one thing but your actions are the opposite. Eventually she came to the realization that her child would thrive and survive without her or her support but that her child may choose not to be involved in her life if she didn't provide support. This was a major wake up call for her. She realized that in order for her to continue to be in her child's life that she needed to advocate, support and listen to her her.

"LGBTQ youth are more than four times as likely to attempt suicide than their peers (Johns et al., 2019; Johns et al., 2020). Existing research points to increased disparities for bisexual youth, transgender and nonbinary youth, and LGBTQ youth of color."

Dr. Lulu's ex-husband still doesn't support his child's sexuality and now their child refers to him as his "ex-father." Clearly, there is anonymity and resentment between them but as it stands now the father is dying of cancer and it is a likely scenario that he could die without seeing his child again. With the high rates suicide within the LGBTQ community, especially for children of color it is important to make them feel loved and supported. For families that support their kids there is a 50% decrease in suicide rates, when maternal support is offered to children the suicide rates decrease by nearly 87%. Before accepting her child as gender non-conforming, Dr. Lulu used to cry to God asking why her child was born this way. However, she eventually came to the realization that she was the absolute best person to have a child that didn't fit the gender or sexual norms due to her own experiences with her sexuality.

Dr. Lulu's growth story is filled with so many valuable lessons that anyone can appreciate and learn from. The main lessons that I took away from our interview were that it is a positive thing to challenge your beliefs and to accept others as they are and not try to put your beliefs on expectations on them but also to show more understanding and love for other people. We never know what someone is going through so it is important to always show kindness, love and compassion to others. My goal with this newsletter is to spread awareness and to help parents and families going through similar situations as Dr. Lulu went through. The relationship we have with our children is precious and I hope that every child that identifies as LGBTQ is supported, valued and loved by their families. If you are a parent of a child that is LGBTQ or know someone that is and needs help please reach out to Dr. Lulu for guidance and support. Let's all do our part to become more accepting towards the differences in others. Spread love, fight for inclusion, open your mind towards new perspectives, and do your part to end hate.

Please subscribe to my newsletter for weekly inspiration!

Follow Tara Gooch & Best Branding Solutions:

• Connect with Tara Gooch on LinkedIn-->?Tara LaFon Gooch, MBA
• Follow Best Branding Solutions on LinkedIn-->?Best Branding Solutions, LLC.
• Visit our website: www.bestbranding.solutions

Follow Dr. Lulu & Support Her Work:

• Follow Dr. Lulu on LinkedIn--> Uchenna "Dr. Lulu?” Umeh NGLCC Certified
• Email: [email protected]

Like this newsletter? Every week I write about topics centered around growth. Please share this newsletter with friends, family, neighbors and connections. Your support makes a world of difference. Thank you!