Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Kimberly Duff. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Kimberly, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear about the things you feel your parents did right and how those things have impacted your career and life.

At the age of 12 my parents were told that I had brain cancer and the doctors said I had 6 months at the most to live. I maintain my parents did two things right pertaining to my diagnosis and treatment. They made the decision to seek the best medical facilities and to find the best doctors and medical treatments out there and they decided they would not ever tell me the gravity of my diagnosis and condition. Thus, I faced the diagnosis of terminal cancer firmly believing that I would be okay and viewed each treatment as a temporary hardship that would eventually lead to my recovery. In hindsight, I realize that this experience illustrates the value of a positive attitude in facing hardship and difficulty.

Kimberly, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I’m Kimberly Duff and I am the owner of Overcomers Counseling, LLC practicing online virtually throughout the state of Georgia. I am a wife, a mother, a person who is blind, and a brain cancer survivor. I specialize in disability and chronic illness, the military and their family members, and Christian counseling . I decided to pursue my counseling career to help others overcome the impossible challenges in their lives.

Currently, I am in the process of expanding my business to include accessibility consultation services for other online therapists and/or medical practitioners. I am passionate about accessibility because adaptive technology enabled me to soar in life by helping me complete my education and giving me the adaptive skills to be successful in my career.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Today, in my day to day life I am able to focus on the importance of perspective and ignoring the negative messages and the death sentences that are spoken by others. This perspective may be reflected in my career as an overall optimism and belief in my ability to succeed no matter what others say or what challenges I face. One example of this can be illustrated by my decision to implement online counseling in my practice. When I started offering online counseling in 2019 others discouraged this practice and told me that I would need to maintain an office in order to be successful. However, I was able to be resilient and move forward and be in the position to thrive when Covid hit and am able to offer these services exclusively online today.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

I remember waking up from the coma and surgery that left me totally blind and asking my mother, “How am I going to do anything now that I’m blind??” This question shows I always had big plans for my future even at the lowest point in my illness. My mother’s statement framed my future and allowed me to pivot and see things in a different way. She said, “You can still do whatever you were going to do before, you will just need to learn to do things differently now,” I took this statement to heart and went through extensive rehabilitation to learn to type, use a computer, use audio books and learn skills to travel and live independently as a person who is blind. In 2000, I graduated from Kennesaw State University Summa Cum Laude with my degree in psychology and I received my masters degree in rehabilitation counseling in 2005. I was married that same year and we had our daughter seven years later in 2012. In 2016 I became fully licensed as a counselor in the state of Georgia and started my private practice, Overcomers Counseling, LLC.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.counselingbykimberly.com/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Overcomers-Counseling-LLC-582684121879245
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/kimberly-duff-ms-lpc-crc-90093512
• Twitter: @kim_counselor
• Other: Psychology Today:https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapists/kimberly-r-duff-acworth-ga/283330

Image Credits
Jason Satcher Tracie Satcher