We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Rebekah Yigael a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Rebekah, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. If you had a defining moment that you feel really changed the trajectory of your career, we’d love to hear the story and details.

I experienced many twists and turns as a teen, with grief and trauma becoming a core part of my story early on. After losing my grandma as well as my father, it started to feel like death and darkness followed me wherever I went. My relationship with my dad was a tumultuous one, and his passing further complicated my feelings towards him and how I was raised. Shortly after my dad passed away, I found myself in an abusive relationship that I couldn’t seem to get out of. Each time I made the decision to leave, I would somehow get pulled back in. I was so scared that this relationship was as good as it gets, and that if I left, I’d be all alone. Each of these experiences stacked on top of one another, causing me to see myself as someone undeserving of love and happiness. Amid everything going on around me, I managed to find the drive within me to finish high school and graduate from college. I think a part of me knew that this would my escape route.

During my last year of college, I decided to move away from my hometown to Houston- a huge city where I knew no one. I knew that to get out of the relationship, I would need to create space and distance between myself and the other person. This decision changed my life in so many ways. It helped me find the strength within myself to end things for good, but it was also a turning point in my professional life. It was at the University of Houston’s Graduate College of Social Work that I learned about a trauma fellowship program being offered to social work graduate students. I remember vividly a pivotal moment sitting in a university computer lab, staring back at the trauma fellowship application on the screen, and I knew I had a major choice to make. Would I continue to run away from my past and how it shaped me? Or would I finally face it and begin to heal my own wounds in order to help others do the same? Once again, I was nervous for what the future held for me, but this time I chose to trust in myself, remembering the strength and courage that has always been there within me, waiting to be accessed and utilized.

Here we are, 8 years later, and I am so grateful to my younger self for completing that application and being accepted into the trauma fellowship program. There is nothing else I could imagine myself doing other than being a trauma therapist and helping others bounce back after going through traumatic experiences.

Rebekah, 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 a licensed therapist and co-owner of a virtual private practice- HVL Therapy & Coaching Center. We’re a husband and wife team that helps women, men and couples going through IVF or seeking support for miscarriages and other reproductive issues like endometriosis, unexplained infertility, and PCOS. Experiencing trauma and loss in my own life is why I am so passionate about helping others heal and create a life worth living.

The cool thing about our practice is that we are truly integrated. We offer whole body healing and wellness in addition to therapy services, because we believe deeply in the connection between the body and mind. We know that the most effective way to create lasting change is to focus on more than strictly mental health. At HVL, professionals trained in health coaching, metabolic analysis, and nutrition are also available in addition to therapists and life coaches to help facilitate healing and transformation in a comprehensive way.

If you could go back in time, do you think you would have chosen a different profession or specialty?

I absolutely would be a therapist if I could go back! Being a therapist is a really freaking cool job. I get to sit with other humans as they get to know themselves on a deeper level. Witnessing someone heal their own wounds, unlearn painful core beliefs (I am worthless, I am not good enough, I have to be perfect) and develop healthier ones (I am worthy of love, I am good enough, I am fine as I am), as well as access the vital resources within to cultivate a healthy, vibrant life is really what therapy is all about. One hope I have for everyone, particularly women and teens seeking therapy and wellness services, is that they will learn how to cultivate a healthier relationship with self in a way that feels right for them.

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

Similarly to many others, I lost my job at a fertility clinic during 2020 due to the pandemic. After this happened, I started to ask myself some really important questions and realized that in order to be the most effective therapist I could be, I would need to stop working for somebody else and let go of the false sense of security that this brought me in the past. In order to manage burnout and create an environment conducive to my success and satisfaction as a professional, I would need to pivot and begin to forge my own path as a small business owner. This also meant that it was time to count on myself, and step into the truth that I am good enough to do this work, and I have what it takes to own a business.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.hvltcc.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hvl_therapyandcoaching/?hl=en

Image Credits
Madison Shingleton