Today we’d like to introduce you to Cas Winter

Hi Cas, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?

Hi! My name is Cas. I help Neurodivergent and Chronically Ill people struggling with burnout go from feeling stuck, alone, and hopeless, to mastering a toolset for genuine self-care and a bias toward action, so they can choose where to spend their precious time and energy to create the life they want.

I wasn’t expecting for this to become my career, but crazy things happen when you become chronically ill and disabled at the age of 14. I have Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS), Hypermobile Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (hEDS), Complex PTSD, and I’m also Autistic.

I wanted to be a screenwriter, and then a 3D animator, but after college it became abundantly clear that I am too disabled to work a “normal” job. At the time I couldn’t really do anything. Turned out I was suffering from extreme burnout and ended up being stuck on the sofa for almost 10 years straight recovering.

At the time I didn’t have access to any professionals who truly understood what I was going through as a Neurodivergent, Chronically Ill, and Disabled individual. But it was more than that, professionals in that field were few and far between, and unfortunately that’s still true.

I essentially had to figure out how to care for myself and heal all… by… myself…

I became an expert in productivity and self-care, and I discovered that I was far from the only person struggling with the same issues, so I decided to become that expert I wish I’d had access to years before.

I’m honored to get to help and transform the lives of so many wonderful people, to hold their hands through the struggles that I had to face alone, so they never have to feel alone and achieve results faster than I ever did.

The analogy I use is that one’s life is a house, and if you’re Neurodivergent, Chronically Ill, or Disabled, your house is not up to code and needs renovations or is simply in a toxic neighborhood. (Ableism, white supremacy, and late stage capitalism anyone?!) But unlike a real house renovation or bad neighborhood, one doesn’t have the option of moving out or staying in a hotel, you still have to live in your house. It’s your life. What I do is help people survive, if not thrive, in their house and in their neighborhood.

Nowadays there are many more professionals and experts in these fields, but there still aren’t really ones that do what I do: help someone survive in their house and neighborhood while it’s difficult to live in.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?

Whoever you are, building a business from the ground up is hard. You have to master skills that don’t necessarily come naturally to you. On top of being a productivity expert and life coach for Neurodivergent, Chronically Ill, and Disabled individuals, I’ve had to become: a marketing expert, a business administration expert, a sales expert, a bookkeeper, a human resources expert, and so much more.

“Solopreneur” doesn’t do it justice.

And because of that, I am still far from being an expert in all of these areas. Marketing is still difficult, and is the element that is preventing my business from growing at the rate I would like it to.

I am so, so proud of myself for never having given up, and I continue to make that decision every day.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?

I help Neurodivergent and Chronically Ill people struggling with burnout go from feeling stuck, alone, and hopeless, to mastering a toolset for genuine self-care and a bias toward action, so they can choose where to spend their precious time and energy to create the life they want.

The main way I work with clients is through my signature course and group coaching program, The Action Navigator. It’s packed with tools and techniques for mastering your time, getting organized, and offering yourself radical compassion.

One of the things I’m most proud of is the private community I host for my course students inside Discord. Every one of my students has access to it and, because my program is lifetime access, they have lifetime access to this community as well. Where the greater Internet can be so toxic, triggering, and simply unsafe for the people in my community, our Discord server has become a safe haven for people to be truly seen and understood, and to get their needs met. I love it.

What was your favorite childhood memory?

One of my favorite childhood memories is tangled up with one of my darkest, which is often the case with Complex PTSD.

Content Warning: Medical Trauma

In the first few months of becoming chronically ill at the age of 14, I was hospitalized at OHSU Doernbecher for a few days. One of the tests they performed involved putting a testing tube into my nose, through my sinuses, and in theory, down into my stomach. It was supposed to measure my stomach acid levels for 24 hours.

But unfortunately, the tube went down my trachea instead.

We didn’t know that at the time, however. All we knew was that I felt like I was choking, and it hurt, and I couldn’t drink liquids without coughing violently.

But I was a child, and the doctors thought I was being “overly dramatic.”

After one to two hours, my mom and I finally convinced the doctors to investigate. They wheeled my bed down to the X-Ray room.

The radiologist was a sweet young man who could tell that I was suffering. Once he was done taking the x-rays he went into his office, grabbed something, and brought it back to me.

It was a small stuffed bear.

I still have that bear to this day.

I was wheeled back up to my room, and a few minutes later a storm of people raced into my room. Someone shoved a bucket under my face and another yanked out the tube with force. It was only after the tube was out that we learned it had been in my trachea.

I’ve seen many, many medical professionals in my life. Very few of them have showed me the kindness that that radiologist showed me. To this day I wish I knew his name.

In my work, I want to be the one that has the stuffed bear for the person in need.

Pricing:

• I offer a sliding scale for my program, The Action Navigator.
• Depending on an individuals financial situation, they pick the pricing tier that is accessible for them.
• My tiers range from $1,500 to Pay What You Can.
• Regardless of what tier a student chooses, they get the same lifetime access to the entire program.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.accountabilitymuse.com/action-navigator-course
• Instagram: @ceowinter
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/accountabilitymuse
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CassieWinter
• Other: TikTok and Lemon8: @ceowinter