Stories are incredibly powerful – their ability to teach, inspire, and create understanding is why we are so in love with storytelling. Most stories have a defining moment and so we’ve asked some of the most talented, insightful folks across a broad range of industries and markets to tell us about a defining moment in their story.

Maureen Hughes

I would have to say a defining moment in my life is when I realized how unfulfilled I was as a biotechnology sales person. I had previous experience in the “healing arts” from 2002-2006, when I was teaching yoga and just learning a little about Thai Massage. But, my bills were telling me I needed to do something else… with my PhD background in the sciences, I ended up in biotechnology sales. Read more>>

Jessenia Galvan-Lloyd

Five years ago I was more stressed than I had EVER been. I had always struggled with stress and anxiety but life was throwing curve balls at me that I was not ready for. To top it off, my back was aching so badly that I couldn’t stand or sit up for too long without needing to lay down. Read more>>

Dr. Kaylee Simmerman,PT,DPT

A defining moment that really gave me the passion to become a Pelvic Floor Specialist was when I was 22 years old, fresh out of Undergraduate. I had been suffering with urine leakage since I was 15, and pain with intimacy since I was 17. I went to a new Gynecologist and sat in her office, was needing a Pap smear, and was wondering if there was any advice about my pain with intimacy. I will never forget when she came in, sat down, asked me if I had any concerns and I said yes. Read more>>

Frans Stiene

One of my defining moments in my life was when I made a very conscious choice to start to heal myself. I suffered from chronic back problems since I was 16 years old, at the age of 30 it was worse then ever and I felt physically and emotionally lost. I still remember that moment, it was so powerful to make a very clear decision to start healing myself. Read more>>

Nicole Linde

I don’t remember having just one moment, more like several! Mine was a series of awakenings, each with a story of its own. Not all mediums are born knowing their abilities, and I certainly didn’t understand mine until later. However, when I look back and connect the dots the signs were all around me trying to wake me up one step at a time. Read more>>

Marie Smith

In April of 2022, I was cruising in my career as a personal trainer. I had been with the same company for almost 10 years, my schedule was as full as I wanted it to be, and nothing was really wrong with my professional life. However, I found myself wondering, “Is this it? Is this all there is?” I went on a retreat weekend, mostly to have a break from responsibility for a couple days, but also to spend some time reflecting. Read more>>

Casey Rovinski

I started playing tennis about 2 years ago and at 33 years old it was the first sport I had ever played. For some context, growing up, PE was my least favorite activity – especially, and I can’t tell you why, anything involving a ball coming at me fast. I ran, literally, in the opposite direction. But, after years of engaging in activities that I closely grazed perfection in, I was inspired to find some contrast. Read more>>

Pamela Shakir

The defining moment in my life was when I got divorced. Prior to marriage, I made a commitment to myself that I would honor my vows and be committed to being the best wife. I entered my marriage believing I would be married to this person for the rest of my life. This is what most people say and hope. Unfortunately, life happened and I found myself standing in line filing a petition for divorce. Read more>>

Danilsa Stella

Woke up one day in my mid-30s and thought to myself…we have only one life and if you’re lucky some live until their 90s and when you think about it that’s not a very long time. Therefore, why shouldn’t we live better? Happier? Free of the traumas that we hold on to. That’s when I decided to smile more and love more. Learned to be more generous with time and emotions assuring those closest to me that they are loved and protected by me. Read more>>

Dr. Matthew T. Jacobs

I want to take a minute and share a little bit about my story, and why I became a Chiropractor. My father worked in construction and he started suffering with back pain when he was only 34 years old. He suffered with this taxing pain every day and every night. After 8 years of suffering, he finally reached the point that the pain was so bad, he decided he had to do something about it. Read more>>

Neisha Simpson

Having a dream and a vision about something you are passionate about, was the easy part of the journey that I was preparing to embark upon. Little did I know about the trials and tribulations that were ahead. Because I had a passion, the vision, the proposal, and the board- I believed that everything would be smooth sailing. I also believed that people would believe and be passionate about my vision as I did. I was wrong. Read more>>

Mindy Evans

My fitness journey start in 2014 when I decided to take control of my health. I started working out regularly and with that I met new friends at the gym, gained confidence and became a healthier person. This started my journey to become a personal trainer. I saw the impact fitness had on my life and wanted to share it with others. I started running and biking, which led to participating in half marathons, mountain bike races and group road rides. Read more>>

Erika Wetherill

After graduating from the University of North Texas I got my first job and was working in a cubicle and did not enjoy it! I got my first facial shortly after that and I was like “this is so cool and this is what I want to do!” I promptly went back to school for my Esthetics license and I have been so very happy with my decision! Read more>>

Ali Kates

Hi, thank you for having me. A big defining moment in my career was in May of 2019 my life was turned upside down. My health had crashed and 2 weeks after our honeymoon I was sitting in an IV room for 9.5 months, 3-4x a week. Up until this point in my life I knew I could handle hard things. Throughout childhood and adolescent I had faced a lot of adversity from sexual abuse to my parents divorce, and the loss of loved ones. Read more>>

Sharon Gam

I can remember the moment when I knew I wanted exercise to be a big part of my life. I was a quiet and shy kid and usually avoided attention at school. When I was in 4th grade, it was announced that there would be a 1-mile running event at the end of the year. Each grade would run together at the school track. Read more>>

Dr. Danielle Delaney

One of the defining moments that led to my creation of Plan D Wellness & Recovery was when I sent one of my staff Nurses, who is also a Wellness Concierge/Sober Companion, to stay with a longtime client in Florida. The client was experiencing so many health difficulties, and relapsing into her depression as well as her alcoholism. The stumbling blocks this client kept encountering were things that could not be dealt with during her inpatient stay at a fantastic rehab facility – her issues were problems at home Read more>>

Megan Zuzevich

One of my defining professional moments was in my own healing journey, when I became aware of the connection between my gut health and my anxiety. I always thought I “handled stress well,” until I had my first panic attack – while I was driving on the freeway in the Bay Area. I was experiencing a lot of stress at work, getting ready to take my licensing test, and ending a not so healthy relationship. I was experiencing a lot of physical symptoms too, including weight gain, inflammation, fatigue, IBS, and headaches. Read more>>

Alexia Antoine

I never knew how stubborn depression could be until I dealt with it from age 15 to 27. I grew up as an only child, while watching my family unit fall apart at the hands of a supposed family friend. We had no older generation as a voice of wisdom and there was no intervention to be found, so depression had perfect conditions to grow. After college, I had a degree, but no confidence, or knowledge of how to get started with adult life. Read more>>

Melissa Corbin

I am a Cosmetic and Plastic surgery PA-C (Physician Associate Certified) who worked in the Orthopedic and Infectious Disease floor as a Medical Assistant before going to PA school. A defining moment for me was when I went from being the provider to being the patient and needing a total hip replacement at 35 years old. I am a former athlete and very active, have two little girls who are 2 and 4 years old, I work full time on my feet, and I had to relearn how to walk independently and care for myself. It was incredibly eye-opening and I was really able to resonate with my former patients who had similar surgeries and see firsthand how difficult and painful the recovery was. Read more>>

Sharon Carothers

I have always had a keen focus on women’s issues, particularly their health and well-being, and wanted to move to Washington, DC as soon as I could to affect change. Those were the bright-eyed and bushy tailed days of my professional youth. I struggled to understand how to influence not just one person but to make change to support women’s lives more broadly in a meaningful way – pay equity, affordable child care, more effective cancer diagnosis and treatment, and aging with dignity were a few that filled my mind during college. Read more>>