Life began in a somewhat challenging way for me, but as we all know, it is adversity that makes us the strong people we are today. I was born overweight. At 3 months old the doctor told my mother she should put me on a skim milk diet, instead of breastfeeding. My mother was appalled, and would not consider such a suggestion, for which I do have to give her credit. However, due to my family's poor eating habits, I went from bad to worse. By the time I was in my teens I weighed almost 200 lbs.

Add to this the fact that exercise was a bad word in my family. No one even considered it, and as a child I had asthma, as did my father. Since his was so severe, it was assumed mine was as well, so I was treated as an invalid of sorts. My mother would give me notes to excuse me from gym class, and my idea of exercise was walking from the car to the house.

One might assume that given this childhood experience I might come away with the idea that I would always be overweight, and in truth, I did hold that belief for almost 30 years. I carried my weight like an albatross. I did not exercise, and even sat at the bottom of trails while my friends hiked them.

But one day I knew I did not want to be this person anymore, and through Weight Watchers, therapy, and just plain gumption, I came to realize I had power over this demon.

It is for this reason that I have chosen Lifecoaching as a realm to deal with weight and other challenging issues. It is a forward journey. I can look back at all the trauma I experienced around my body and feel a sense of relief I am not that person, and hold no judgement at the same time. In fact I realize now it was a gift, as it taught me incredible lessons.

My focus in becoming a coach is to give others the gift of learning to see what life gave them, and how they can overcome every obstacle and learn, grow and change. I truly believe each one of us has the power to get exactly what we dream of in our lives, but sometimes we need a driving force to give us a little direction. I hope to be that driving force for others.