Seven Years of Second Chances: Reclaiming My Health, Power, and Joy

On March 7, 2018, my body forced me to stop.

One moment, I was home, moving through life as I always had—pushing, striving, ignoring the signals my body had been sending me for years. The next, I was in the grip of an unbearable pain—an explosion in my head so intense that it took my breath away. My vision blurred. My neck stiffened. The light burned my eyes. I tried to gather myself, to push through it, as I had always done—but this time, my body wasn’t letting me override it.

Hours later, in the emergency room, a doctor looked at me and delivered words that would change everything:

“You have a ruptured brain aneurysm.”

At that moment, I became a statistic. And not a favorable one.

Aneurysm ruptures are often fatal. Two-thirds of survivors are left with permanent neurological damage—memory loss, cognitive impairment, difficulty speaking, or mobility issues. The odds weren’t in my favor. But my fight was just beginning.

I spent the next 20 days in the neurological ICU, undergoing two open-head surgeries to repair the damage and prevent another rupture. My skull was cut open. My brain exposed. Wires, tubes, and monitors surrounded me, tracking every breath, every beat, every sign that I was still here.

And yet, in the midst of the trauma, something unexpected happened.

ICU: "I See You"

The ICU—an environment that should have been cold, sterile, terrifying—became something else entirely.

It became a place where I felt deeply seen, deeply loved, and deeply connected.

Over 100 people came to my bedside—family, friends, colleagues, people I hadn’t seen in years. They sat with me, held my hand, reminded me of the impact I had made on their lives. They told me stories I had forgotten—moments where I had encouraged them, supported them, inspired them. It showed me the power of human connection. 

I heard the prayers, the whispered encouragement, the determination in my friends’ voices when they told me, “You’re going to get through this.”

The ICU—a place most people associate with suffering—became a space of gratitude, clarity, and undeniable proof of how much I was loved.

I was still here. I was still intact—physically, cognitively, spiritually. I had been given a second chance.

And I wasn’t about to waste it.

The False Choice: Career or Health?

Before my aneurysm, I lived the way many high-achieving women do—as if my body were something to manage, rather than something to honor.

I didn’t neglect food—I overate it. I used it to soothe, to push through stress, to fill the void that exhaustion and overwhelm had created. My meals weren’t fueling me; they were numbing me.

I didn’t deny myself rest—I collapsed into exhaustion. I ran on adrenaline, pushing through fatigue until my body forced me to stop.

I had convinced myself that taking care of my body would slow me down. That success meant sacrifice—and my health was the price.

But that was a lie.

Lying in that hospital bed, I finally saw the truth:

The body is not a barrier to success. It is the foundation of it.

If I wanted to lead, to thrive, to truly live, I had to stop treating my body like an inconvenience.

Rebuilding from the Inside Out

Leaving the hospital, I knew I couldn’t go back to my old patterns. This time, I would treat my body as my most valuable asset—not as an afterthought, but as a source of power, clarity, and resilience.

That didn’t mean dieting. That didn’t mean punishing workouts. That didn’t mean more extremes.

It meant shifting my mindset—unlearning the belief that my body existed to be controlled and instead embracing it as a source of wisdom and strength.

Success wasn’t about how much I could endure. It was about how well I could thrive.

And as I worked to rebuild my health, I realized that this wasn’t just my journey. It was a journey shared by countless executive women.

The Birth of Executive Losers

I saw it everywhere—brilliant, driven women exhausted, overextended, and disconnected from themselves.

Women leading billion-dollar organizations but struggling to make time for a simple walk. Women who could command a boardroom but felt powerless over their own well-being. Women stuck in cycles of stress eating, overworking, and burnout, convinced that their only choice was to keep pushing through.

I knew that if I had been trapped in this cycle for years, they were too. And I wanted to help them break free.

That’s why I created Executive Losers—not just as a weight-loss program, but as a radical redefinition of success for high-performing women.

We don’t just count calories. We count wins. We don’t obsess over the scale. We celebrate non-scale victories (NSVs). We don’t chase quick fixes. We build sustainable power.

Our philosophy is rooted in five core success principles, supported by our foundation of community support & wisdom:

1. Knowing Your Why – Understanding your true motivation makes change sustainable. Your ‘why’ is what keeps you going when motivation fades.

2. Practicing Conscious Eating – Eating with intention, recognizing hunger cues, and understanding how food makes you feel is key to long-term wellness.

3. All Movement is Good Movement – Every step, stretch, and dance move counts. Movement isn’t about punishment—it’s about celebrating what your body can do.

4. Rest & Relax – Sleep and stress management are just as important as nutrition and exercise. A well-rested body is a powerful body.

5. Celebrate Your NSVs – Non-scale victories—like feeling stronger, having more energy, or managing stress better—matter just as much as numbers on a scale.

Foundation: Community Support & Wisdom

Transformation doesn’t happen in isolation. We thrive in community—by surrounding ourselves with like-minded women, we hold ourselves accountable and inspired.

Health is the Ultimate Power Move

Seven years after my aneurysm, I am stronger, healthier, and more unstoppable than ever.

Not because I found some secret hack. Not because I sacrificed my ambition for wellness. But because I redefined what success looks like.

Today, I wake up energized. I move my body with love and appreciation. I eat in a way that fuels my leadership. I rest without guilt. I trust my body’s wisdom. I lead with strength.

And I am thriving.

For a deeper look at my personal journey and the principles that transformed my life, read my book, "Embody Joy: A Woman’s Journey of Reconnection with Her Body." In it, I share the raw, honest details of my wake-up call and how I reclaimed my body, my health, and my joy. A portion of the profits of the book sales are donated to the Aneurysm and AVM Foundation (TAAF). 

Ready to take control of your health AND thrive in your career?

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