Unleashing Potential: A Journey from Early Challenges to Resilience for High-Achieving Women

Are you a high-achieving woman struggling with self-doubt and stress? You're not alone. In this week's episode, I dive deep into the origins of self-doubt in successful women from challenging backgrounds and share my personal journey. Discover powerful strategies to increase awareness and reclaim your power when you're feeling less than or stressed out.

Tune in now and start your journey to empowerment! 🎧✨

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#Podcast #Empowerment #SelfDoubt #WomenInLeadership #Resilience #PersonalGrowth #OvercomingObstacles #ConfidenceBoost #MindsetShift #WomenEmpowerment #StressRelief

Transcript

Welcome to the The Positive Growth Doctor Podcast®! I am your host, Dr. Christina Wilson. 

You’ve worked really hard, got good grades, finished college, and are working in your field. You have earned a seat at the table as they say.

So why is it that you feel like you don’t belong, are not enough, or are an imposter? You know, that uncertainty and second guessing that leads to anxiety, self-doubt, and the ongoing entanglement in negative thought loops over and over again. 

In this episode, we explore how women can work hard to get where they are but feel like something is missing and get bogged down with feelings of uncertainty and doubt. 

I give you strategies to adapt well in the face of adversity and achieve higher well-being. The well-being that YOU deserve!

Find the full transcript for this episode on your favorite podcast app. 

Please share the podcast with other women to help them grow on their journey through life. 

You can also do this by leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. I appreciate you! 

The Origins of Self-Doubt in Successful Women from Challenging Upbringings

Some of my earlier memories are of discord between my parents. My last memory of my parents being together was of me and my mom traveling from Florida to Illinois in the middle of the night on a Greyhound bus when I was 5. 

My mom started selling things to afford a ticket. As quickly as she sold something, my dad, who was addicted to pills, would buy drugs with it. Until finally, my mom called my grandpa who sent money for the tickets. 

I remember the trip well. I was wearing a red shirt. I can smell the smells of the bus as if it was yesterday. 

My mom called it a new adventure. All I knew was that my daddy was gone. She worked 2-3 jobs for the next 10 years to support us. She tried nursing school but was simply unable to do it all. 

She instilled in me the importance of getting a college degree. Afterall, we learned that you have to be prepared for anything. Years of study later and $250,000 in debt, I did just that. 

Does any of this sound familiar?

I worked so hard. I am neurodivergent so I had to put forth more effort at learning the material since I learn differently. 

I didn’t have the study skills initially because growing up my teachers assumed I was stupid and lazy since they did not know how to approach neurodivergence. 

Sadly many of them didn’t care given the small town politics. I was on my own while my mom was working to put food on the table. I had to figure it out and was smart enough to pass the tests without all the homework. 

It was different in college. I was like a phoenix rising from the ashes. For the first time, people saw ME! They recognized what I brought to the table. 

I was chosen from the brightest students to conduct research in undergrad. Ugh, I was always the last pick for dodge ball just a few years prior. 

I graduated with honors and was a clinical director by the time I was 23. Yep, my ship had come in. I was part of an elite team of clinicians dodging bullets and had the power of getting judges to sign off on commitment papers. 

So, why was I so anxious that I wasn’t doing enough? By this time, I was a full force perfectionist in all I did. That started in grad school where I didn’t accept anything less than an A. 

In my Master’s program, I brought to my professor’s attention that he miscalculated my grade. It was an A and not an A-. He was disturbed by this and said, “There are worse things in this world than an A-. I reminded him that his mistake impacted my GPA. 

All my life, I compared myself with others. As females, the comparison trap is real for all of us regardless of your upbringing. 

When you grow up with serious adversity, you are catapulted to the top of the very high  mountain of comparison already overflowing from society’s unreasonable expectations on females. That is a problem!

Strategies to Help Women to Increase Awareness and Reclaim Their Power When They Feel Less Than and Stressed Out

I had a job in my early 30’s that was highly stressful. Working in the mental health field is stressful, but this agency was poorly run by those who did not understand the individuals we were serving. In fact, those in charge did not understand mental health and were terrible managers. 

I had a 30 minute drive to work. Every morning, I caught myself ruminating and stressing about the day to come. By doing so, I felt I had some control over the possible events of the day. 

I am a pretty optimistic person and like to find joy where I can. This was making me miserable, and I didn’t like it. 

So one day I had enough. I switched gears and flipped my morning script. Here is what I did. 

1. I refused to go down the road of negativity. If I ever so slightly started to veer in that direction, I regrouped and got back on track. 
2. I reminded myself who I was every single morning on the drive to work. I am the daughter of a King, who did not put me on this earth to be dragged down while I was serving and helping others who were struggling. What others thought of me did not matter. I worked hard to be in my profession. I was really good at it and NOTHING was getting in my way. 
3. Then, I changed the script by using affirmations. I said… I am going to work hard to serve others today. I will be appreciated for my efforts. The management and supervisors will see my contribution and support me. I am capable. I am strong and will embrace my missteps as opportunities to learn.

What did all this do? It changed my mindset going into the battleground, a highly negative and toxic place. 

Why? It all starts in your mind. When they say it’s in your head, it really is on some level. 

You don’t have to say something for those around you to feel your vibe. By internally regulating my state of being before even setting foot in that place, I changed the unspoken vibe. They were less negative with me and focused their negative energy on their others. 

The fact that I had changed the tide with a bit of priming on the way to work was pretty amazing. 

I believed that things would change in my life, and it did. In fact, I met my husband later that year, got married, and had a baby that two doctors said I would never have. 

Look at what you have achieved already. YOU deserve to enjoy it. YOU can enjoy it. Let’s do this together.

I am building a Facebook Group for Women called The Women’s Empowerment Group. I have big plans for this group as it grows, so join today! Find the link in the transcript. 

The goal is for women to come together to learn and increase a healthy well-being and support one another along the way.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/thewomensempowermentgroup

I hope this has helped.

Let's meet up again next week for another episode.