My Story

In 2013, my body forced me to stop.

I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, an autoimmune condition where the immune system turns against the joints, creating chronic inflammation, pain, and swelling. It is often described as a disease of the body, but what I experienced went far beyond physical symptoms.

My joints were inflamed and unpredictable. Some days I could barely move. I was told medication was my only option and warned that without it I would likely lose my mobility within five years.

What no one explained was how completely this diagnosis would affect my life.

My energy dropped.
My clarity faded.
My confidence wavered.
My sense of stability disappeared.

I stumbled not only in my body, but in my work, my leadership, and the way I carried responsibility. Decisions that once felt simple became exhausting. Tasks required effort instead of flow. The woman who had always been capable and dependable suddenly felt unsure of how to keep going.

That was my first real understanding that health is not separate from life or leadership. It quietly determines how much we can carry, how clearly we think, and how steadily we show up.

I could feel the gap widening between who I appeared to be and how I actually felt. I was still showing up, still achieving, still leading, but I was doing it from a system that was no longer supported.

Something in me knew that masking symptoms was not the same as understanding what my body was communicating. I was not interested in managing decline. I wanted clarity. I wanted truth. I wanted to rebuild from the inside out.

That search led me into functional medicine and whole-person health. For the first time, I encountered an approach that viewed the body as intelligent and interconnected, not broken or betraying me. As I began supporting my physical foundations, something important shifted.

My energy returned.
My thinking sharpened.
My steadiness grew.

And as my body stabilized, my leadership did too.

I rebuilt my life from a stronger inner foundation, and for a season, it felt like I had found my rhythm again.

Then, years later, I entered perimenopause, and the conversation with my body changed once more.

This time, it was quieter but just as disruptive. Fatigue appeared even when I was doing everything right. Sleep stopped restoring me. Brain fog clouded my thinking. Words slipped away mid sentence. Focus fractured. I found myself rereading emails, second guessing decisions, and wondering why the strategies that once worked no longer did.

This was not pain forcing me to stop.
It was depletion asking me to listen.

Once again, it touched everything.

My work required more effort.
My leadership felt heavier.
My patience thinned.
My confidence wavered.

I recognized the pattern immediately. This was not failure. It was another transition.

Perimenopause and menopause were not breakdowns.
They were an upgrade request.

My body was asking to be supported differently again, not because I was weaker, but because I was moving into a new phase of capacity, discernment, and responsibility. The way I had carried my life before was no longer sustainable at the level I was now living.

This was when health became unmistakably strategic.

I began listening more deeply, not just to symptoms, but to how I lived, how I carried pressure, how I related to responsibility, and how much I expected of myself without replenishment.

I stopped forcing.
I stopped pushing through.
I stopped treating my body like something to override.

I began treating it as the vessel carrying my purpose, my work, and my wisdom.

That shift marked the true beginning of The Inner Empire™, where the inner foundation determines the strength of the outer empire, and leadership is fueled by steadiness instead of adrenaline.

This is the Upgrade Phase.
The season where women step fully into the wise woman of the village, not by doing more, but by carrying what matters differently.

Now, as I move down the far side of menopause and into post-menopause, something else has revealed itself.

This phase is quieter and more spacious. There is less internal noise and more discernment. My body no longer asks for constant correction, but it does require respect, rhythm, and ongoing support.

Post-menopause is not about fixing symptoms or chasing balance.
It is about stewardship.

About carrying energy wisely. About leading from depth instead of drive. About honoring the body as a long-term partner in the life and leadership I am here to sustain.

I feel steadier now than I ever have, not because life is easier, but because I know how to listen. I know when to support, when to rest, and when to move forward with clarity.

This is where the wise woman of the village fully emerges, not louder, not busier, but more rooted, more discerning, and more capable of holding complexity without losing herself.

This understanding became the foundation of The Inner Empire™.

Today, I walk beside women who lead and carry vision, responsibility, and purpose through perimenopause, menopause, and into post-menopause. Women who know that their outer empire can only rise as high as the inner one that sustains it.

Together, we strengthen the body and mind that carry their mission so leadership feels grounded, powerful, and sustainable.

Health is not a side concern.
It is the strategy that allows everything else to stand.