ABOUT JUANIMA

I am not your average Life Coach.

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When I became certified as a life coach in 2013, I wanted to choose "anxiety" as my niche. My instructor strongly advised against it, saying it wasn't specific enough. I said, "Well, I really want to help people with PTSD," to which he said, "We need to stay away from mental health issues."

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A MOMENT OF REBELLION

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My brain wouldn't let me veer away from the idea. After all, it's what I knew the most. Years of abuse and sexual assaults throughout my own childhood and adolescent years... "putting it behind me" when I was 19... then experiencing a traumatic childbirth when I was 32 that triggered PTSD, and brought the childhood trauma back with a vengeance.

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A WORLD OF FEAR

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PTSD all but destroyed me. It threw me into a world of darkness and terror I had never known. Reliving my trauma every day shattered my spirit, my sense of identity, and will to live, as I was left without time to recover from the pain. The fear and terror was with me at all times.

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I was desperate for freedom from it all, and my first ​chosen path was dismal and permanent. I thank God for intervening that day with a miracle I'll never forget. (You can read my story in my memoir, The Invisible Storm.)

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THE BATTLE BEGINS

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Then I found a reason to fight. I wanted my two girls, 2 and 6 at the time, to never experience sexual abuse, and to grow up with relentless spirits, never giving up when life got hard. What would I be teaching them if I gave up??

 

So I faced the pain; and though I didn't know how at the time, I started researching trauma and PTSD, and how to heal from it. Resources were weak back in 2005, but it did give me hope. I just needed to keep going. 

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Healing was SLOW. Changes were barely noticeable at first. Occasional nights of sleeping were a little bit better. I experienced moments of a little less fear. Being able to finally go into a grocery store. Being able to attend a family event (with alcohol), to being able to attend without it. And eventually being able to go a day without any alcohol at all.

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Alcohol had been my only escape from the pain and overwhelming anxiety. It was the only thing that let me smile for my children and brought my anxiety down enough to laugh and enjoy my family.

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But I knew that wasn't sustainable. I had to heal. I wanted to heal. Because I wanted to help others do the same. It became my mission.

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A MISSION TO HELP

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The pain of trauma had taken so much from me, and I knew of countless others who were suffering the same fate. People who weren't getting helped, even after years of therapy.

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As I relentlessly pursued answers, I began applying different tools and techniques to myself and gained momentum in my healing.

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A NOT-SO-MINOR SETBACK

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In 2013, I became certified as a life coach, launched my practice with 3 new clients, published my memoir, The Invisible Storm, and started a PTSD support group in my hometown. My ambitions to help ran high, but I discovered I wasn't quite healed enough myself to take it all on.

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As my anxiety levels rose higher and higher, it manifested in my eyes; and one day, I couldn't open them. 

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For two years, I couldn't drive... couldn't grocery shop without assistance... couldn't do much of anything without help. I was forced to close my practice and the support group. I got shrugs from over ten doctors and specialists. It was my own research that led me to an answer that made sense: anxiety. A neurologist agreed with me.

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It took months of rest; but finally, in 2015, I was able to open my eyes again.

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MY PURPOSE SPRINGS TO LIFE

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The blessing: I learned the valuable gift of asking for help; something I could never do before. I also learned patience, and let time be a silent carrier of my growth and healing. I continued to work on myself, and heal my own trauma.

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In 2018, I launched my new company, Do Brave, as an eCommerce store. The name had powerful meaning to me! And yet...I hid behind my computer, succumbing to fear, afraid to coach again, as the threat of losing the use of my eyes lingered near.

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Then... I was unexpectedly asked to lead a small group in my church, and despite my nervousness, I said yes. In that group, I learned that 9 out of 10 attendees had past trauma. They were desperate for healing and wanted a better life. I felt a strong sense of love and connection with them, and powerful relationships formed. As I became an influence in their healing, a bright spark ignited in my heart. I knew was meant for more than selling mugs and t-shirts.

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I knew I needed to push through my fear and take the leap to coach again.

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I immersed myself in more clinically-based training about trauma, learning how it impacts us emotionally, psychologically, physiologically, and mentally. I focused my research and training on QUICK methods to heal and became certified in a special technique that eliminates nightmares, flashbacks, and phobias in just one session.

 

Since 2018, I have helped clients ages 10 to 75 get free from their symptoms of PTSD, and get on a targeted path to healing -- without years of therapy, and without the need to TALK about their past trauma.
 

I found the gift in my trauma. Going through my own journey has allowed me powerful insight, compassion, empathy, and understanding of other survivors and what they experience. It also gave me strength, courage, and determination to never give up.

 

It is my passion now to help others heal from past trauma, and find a renewed sense of joy, peace, and purpose in their life. It doesn't have to take years to heal. You can heal traumatic memories so you no longer feel fear, anxiety, or sadness. You can transform beliefs and behaviors to work in your favor and achieve the life you desperately want. 

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Schedule a free 30-minute consultation today to discuss your pathway to healing.

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You were born to Do Brave!!! And you deserve to be free from the trauma of your past for good.

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With love,
Juanima Hiatt

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