We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Kristin Cogan. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Kristin below.

Alright, Kristin thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. What did your parents do right and how has that impacted you in your life and career?

The greatest gift my parents gave me was giving me the space to make mistakes. Through mistakes, I learned invaluable lessons about myself and the world. I developed problem-solving skills, critical thinking abilities, and emotional intelligence as I navigated the consequences of my actions. The gift of mistakes cultivated my resilience equipping me with the inner strength to manage life’s inevitable storms. This resilience was a valuable asset, enabling me to bounce back and from adversity and pursue my dreams. It also taught me that failing is not a bad thing, but instead a stepping stone towards success.

Kristin, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

After graduating from college, I was planning to attend an accelerated nursing program to earn my Master’s in Nursing. A few months before I was to move to a new city and begin my studies I was diagnosed with a rare form of ovarian cancer and given a 15% chance of survival despite the best available treatments. I was 24 years old and thought I had my entire life in front of me and all of a sudden, I was fighting for my life. Nursing school was now put on hold as I began two years of treatment. As I settled into a routine between doctor and chemotherapy appointments, I found myself idle. I enrolled in a local university’s Master of Psychology program with the goal of becoming a professional counselor. I wanted to use my life experience of facing a difficult challenge to help others face their own. After graduating, I obtained my license as a professional counselor as well as my specialist in school psychology license. I worked with children and their families in the public school system for 15 years.

Covid made working in the schools more challenging in all ways. It was during this time I saw the increase in struggles my mom friends were having with parenting during a pandemic. I decided to use my own experience as a mother of five combined with my counseling background to open my own therapy practice focusing on helping mothers experiencing anxiety and overwhelm reclaim the joy in their lives. In 2021, I opened the doors to my private therapy practice, Imperfectly Wonderful Counseling, PLLC.

As a devoted wife and a loving mother of five, I understand the challenges of balancing responsibilities and self-care. I know how it feels when life becomes an endless cycle of tasks, and you find yourself running out of steam. It can be overwhelming to feel like you are not in control and you don’t know where to turn.

Through therapy with me, you can expect big changes, like shifts in your beliefs and thoughts, that will transform your life when combined with my support and guidance. But this does not make me an expert with all the answers. I’ll never look down on you, judge you, or tell you what you need to do. Rather, I’ll be a fellow human being, ready to listen, understand, and empathize with your challenges.

I currently developing an online course geared towards supporting moms experiencing burnout. I can only see so many clients in a week, but having a course available to moms that need support will make therapy much more accessible to busy moms and to moms that may not be able to afford weekly therapy sessions.

Do you think you’d choose a different profession or specialty if you were starting now?

No, I don’t think so. I love what I do, but there is a part of me that regrets that I didn’t fulfill my dream of becoming a doctor. I am disappointed that I let my fear of medical school entrance exams, years of schooling, long hours, and bureaucracy get in my way. Who knows, maybe I will go back to school in the second half of my life. I have a deep love of learning. You will always find me enriching my knowledge whether it is a continuing education course in psychology or a creative outlet like a photography class or cooking class.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

For my 24th birthday I received the gift of a cancer diagnosis…Clear Cell Ovarian Cancer. A very rare cancer found in less than 5% of all ovarian cancer cases in fact most hospitals miss the diagnosis because they haven’t seen it. Prognosis for Clear Cell is not good. It has less than 15% survival rate with treatment. I was stage 3C…advanced. I was supposed to be leaving for nursing school in a few weeks and now I facing months of chemo and most likely death.

I remember lying in bed that night thinking about how my life had changed dramatically in the last few weeks.
“This is just going to be a bump in the road. Why not me? I can handle this.” With a positive attitude, a great medical team, and God on my side, I can get through this.

I think the common response when people are faced with terrible news is to ask “why me?” My outlook was different. Why not me? I didn’t want to view myself as victim in this situation; where something was being done to me. I wanted to be in charge of the situation. I wasn’t going to let cancer control me.

“Why not me?” I am no more deserving or undeserving than the next person. What should make me immune to obstacles in life? “Mind over matter.” That became my motto.

Looking back I still think, why not me? Perhaps, God chose me because He knew I had the strength to persevere. Throughout my journey many people commented on my strength. I guess I stayed strong. I mean, what choice did I really have? Lay down and take it or make the best of the situation and fight like hell?

I chose to fight like hell and keep a positive attitude. Mind over matter.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.imperfectlywonderful.com
• Instagram: ImperfectlyWonderfulMotherhood

Image Credits
Jen Vajdos