Candid Conversations: Christiane Fields on Resilience, Recovery, and Reclaiming Purpose

Christiane Fields is an Army brat and Army veteran who served over nine years on active duty. Growing up in a military family and later serving herself, the military shaped not only her career but her identity, resilience, and sense of responsibility to others. After leaving active duty, she became a nurse, where she witnessed firsthand what happens when individuals and families are unprepared for crisis; medically, emotionally, and financially.

Today, Christiane works in financial protection and legacy planning, with a mission rooted in service: helping veterans and families prepare before crisis hits, build stability, and protect what they’ve worked so hard to earn. Her work is especially focused on supporting women veterans and ensuring that support doesn’t end when the uniform comes off.

Please contact her: cfields@candtfieldsfinancial.com

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:16

Welcome to Candid Conversations, the podcast where women who have served share the real stories behind a uniform. I'm your host, Tamika Eady, Army veteran, leader, and mentor. After more than two decades of service, I realized some of the powerful lessons don't come from titles or reins, but from the honest conversations we have along the way. Here, we talk about leadership, resilience, transition, and moments that shape who we become, both in and beyond military service. So pull up a seat, take a breath, and join us for a conversation that's real, reflective, and unapologetically candid. So today I want to introduce you to my amazing guest. Her name is Christiane Fields. Christiane is an Army brat and Army veteran who has served over nine years on active duty. Growing up in a military family and later serving herself, the military shaped not only her career but her identity, resilience, and sense of responsibility to others. After leaving active duty, she became a nurse where she witnessed firsthand what happens when individuals and families are unprepared for crisis medically, emotionally, and financially. Today, Christianne works in financial protection and legacy planning with a mission rooted in service, helping veterans and families prepare before crisis hits, build stability, and protect what they've worked so hard to earn. Her work is especially focused on supporting women veterans and ensuring that support doesn't end when a uniform comes off. So, guest let's welcome Christiane to Candid Conversations. Hello, Christian. How are you? I am wonderful.

SPEAKER_01 1:53

Thank you, Tamika, for having me on your podcast today.

SPEAKER_00 1:56

You're welcome. Thank you so much for joining me today and sharing your journey and the work you're doing to support veterans and their families. Your story is powerful. It's a powerful reminder that, you know, service doesn't end when we take the uniform off. It simply evolves in new ways of helping others. So let's get into it. First of all, like I said, thank you. I'm so glad that you saw my post on The Women's Veteran. And I appreciate you reaching out to want to share your story and help educate and inform others about what you do and how you can help them. Let's talk about you. Let's talk about kind of a little bit about you. Where are you from and your why? Why did you join the military?

SPEAKER_01 2:35

Oh. Well, to answer your where I'm from, I am from everywhere. Like you said in my intro, I am a military brat. Yeah. Um, I lived most of my life actually in Germany. Wow. I spent 13 wonderful years in Germany. Absolutely loved it because my dad served in it for 21 years. And he's actually what inspired me to join the army. He had such a pride of service, such a patriot. It wasn't all peaches and cream when he was in the service. He went through a lot, but he still had such a pride of service. And it was something really instilled in me, and it made me want to join the army. And then I was also a single mother, and I wanted to provide some kind of stability for my daughter. So that was another reason that I do I decided to join the army to provide that stability and constant for my daughter. So at the age of 19, being a single mother, I went ahead and joined. It was the best experience.

SPEAKER_00 3:46

That's awesome to hear. Kind of similar to mine. My I kind of come from a family of service, also. And my dad served for a couple of years, but my uncle was the one who truly inspired me to join the military. He was in the Air Force, though. But seeing how he was able to travel the world, that was so important for me.

SPEAKER_01 4:04

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 4:04

Coming from a little tiny town of maybe less than 2,000 people. It was so important. I'm like, there's a whole world out there. And he was able to show me, like, hey, you can do this through your service and still serve your country. So I love the fact that you know that you were able to see that as a way to provide for you and your daughter and still serve honorably. The bigger thing is that you were able to spend 13 years in Germany. That is one of the places I've never been, but I've always wanted to go. What was that experience like as a growing up?

SPEAKER_01 4:31

Oh, ah man. It's just good times. I can remember so many good times. It was beautiful over there. We went to so many different places. And I got to experience like uh I got to go to East Berlin before the wall came down. Oh, wow. Yeah, because I was in ROTC and that was a trip that we got to go on. So, you know, that was an experience that some people will never ever get to see. And, you know, it's amazing. I went to DaCau. You know, those are some things that I really take to heart. You know, I I'm even thinking about writing a book because those are experiences that absolutely, you know, I would love other people to experience. I would love my husband to experience it, you know, because I know it's something that I should cherish.

SPEAKER_00 5:16

Yeah. That not, like you said, not a lot of people get to experience. And it's something that was monumental. You know, law coming down was, you know, if you were alive to witness it. And so you got to witness a part of history. That's amazing. So I think that's an awesome idea to put this info and put those things down on paper. So they can forever live through you. So that's awesome. Yes. Great. So let's talk about your military experience. So you went in, you're this young 19-year-old girl with a child, a daughter that you're trying to provide for. Tell me about you know your experience coming into the military and basically what those first few, like first one or two duty stations was like for you, especially being a single mother.

SPEAKER_01 5:57

My first duty station, the unit itself was not bad. However, there was a situation where I was sexually harassed at that first duty station. And the chain of command was not, they didn't do anything. You know, I would report he's old, he's getting ready to retire, don't worry about it. Make excuses, right? Yeah, made excuses for him. But, you know, here I am coming to work every day, you know, cornered or, you know, being made uncomfortable. You know, and you know, people they think it's no big deal, but to the person that is being done to, it's a very big deal.

SPEAKER_00 6:35

Yes, you know, absolutely. It's a huge deal. Because, you know, I think the part for me that I don't understand is we're supposed to have each other's back. Right. We're supposed to be brothers and sisters and aren't. And we both signed up to serve, and yet you feel like it's okay for you to make suggestive, you know, movements or say things that are inappropriate or corner someone, that it's okay because whatever in your mind makes you think that's acceptable. And it doesn't help when the leadership doesn't do anything about it and writes it off as, oh, that's just how he is.

SPEAKER_01 7:09

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 7:09

So I will say, I'm sorry that you had to experience that, but unfortunately, it's a common trend in the military, even still as a woman. How did you move forward or at least process that? Because at times people will want to just say, I'm done, I don't want to do this anymore.

SPEAKER_01 7:22

That's impactful. I went to I got counseling. Okay. I went and got counseling.

SPEAKER_00 7:27

Wonderful. I'm so glad to hear that. And so able to deal with that. So how long did you have to deal with this person?

SPEAKER_01 7:32

About six months.

unknown 7:34

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 7:35

Still six months too long, but yeah.

unknown 7:39

Definitely.

SPEAKER_00 7:41

But okay. And how did you and so with therapy you were able to move past that and still wanted to continue to serve, right?

SPEAKER_01 7:48

Right. Yes.

SPEAKER_00 7:49

And so what did it look like afterwards, after you that type of interaction happens? Like what did moving forward as a female and potentially leader, what did that look like for you?

SPEAKER_01 8:00

After that, I was okay. It didn't impact me a whole lot because I didn't have any other type of leadership affecting me that way. Okay. So you knew that was not the norm. Isolated, yeah. I knew it was an isolated incident. Yeah. Okay. But, you know, the environment is that though. Yeah, I mean, anywhere you go, I mean, them they hoop at you, you know, they call at you, you know, you know, the guards would stop me at the gate, you know, oh, I just wanted to meet you. You know, I mean, yeah, it is the culture. I mean, there's, you know, and you just you have to learn how to deal with it. Yeah. That's the sad part of it. You have to learn how to deal with it.

SPEAKER_00 8:38

And process it. And hopefully, in dealing with it, telling leadership and others about it, they take your concerns seriously and not just brush them off. I think that was the cultural norm for so long. Oh, that's just who they are, or oh well, you're not offended, or telling you how to feel, or making you feel like it's insignificant. When in fact, I want to feel safe when I come to work. I want to feel safe around these people that I say, you know, we both will serve and spend time with. And so take it seriously. So I am glad it was an isolated incident. But I do understand, as being a female in the military, yes, people can do some very inappropriate things that call themselves battle buttons, right? Right. And trying to process that and making sure that moving forward, condone that type of environment or in type of you know, interactions. So in the military, what was your job? I was a 92 Yankee, everybody's best friend. Yes, ma'am. They said you need to know supply, you need to know food service, and you need to know personnel to make sure you get paid. There you go. Awesome. Okay. So during your nine years in the military, being a female, and what did mentorship? I'm kind of big on the mentorship thing because I struggled with that in the beginning when I first joined for the first, say, like six years. And I got promoted very fast. So I'm 86 and six years. So as, but I did it without a lot of mentorship. I kind of figured it out on my own. When you were serving, what did that look like with trying to find a mentor, trying to find someone to help guide you through this process as a female or just being in the army in general?

SPEAKER_01 10:17

I had a lot of male mentorship.

SPEAKER_00 10:19

Yeah. I get that. It was hard for me to find a female to see something in me or see, like, hey, let me grab this soldier and help her along. Do you feel like it's more competitive with the females? They see it more as competition. Right. This is someone, especially if you are higher ranking than me. You already, you're there. Why not help me get there? Right. Um exactly. There's room, there's enough enough to go around. There's more than enough to go around. Look at all the men in there. So definitely there's plenty to go around. Right. Um, were you able to find a female mentor, or did you end up just becoming one during your time?

SPEAKER_01 10:59

Um, I did for a short period of time. I had a first sergeant that was a mentor. She was an awesome first sergeant at Fort Bragg, Fort Bragg, North Carolina. First sergeant blair. First sergeant blair, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 11:11

Call it uh Bragg is the center of the universe, right? Did they call it that back then? Because they definitely call it that now.

SPEAKER_01 11:17

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 11:18

So I've never had the privilege of being stationed at Fort Bragg, but being from South Carolina, it was always known to me. So, well, that was pretty cool. So during your service, you found a that's great that you found a mentor. It took me a while, like I said, to find mine. So it's good when you have people that see your potential and want to pour into you. Um talk about your decision to transition out. Was that on your own, or was it kind of not a choice that you had?

SPEAKER_01 11:45

My choice to get out had a lot to do with being a single mother. Okay, right. And it also had a lot to do with combat engineers. That was the worst unit I was ever in, and they basically broke me.

SPEAKER_00 12:00

Yeah. Yeah. Engineers can do that. Yeah, they can, because it's an all-male unit, it's nothing but males.

SPEAKER_01 12:07

Nothing but males. And and they basically feel like females do not belong in the army, and they will let you know that, no uncertain terms. And uh, yeah, I had a really rough time in that unit, and I was separated from my daughter, and yeah, it that was the turning point. I had a conversation with my command sergeant major at the time, and he basically told me, drop your family care plan. Yeah, I'll chapter you out. I said, okay.

SPEAKER_00 12:33

Yeah. And you know, sometimes that's the best option. That is the best option. Like, hey, you know, what am I what am I doing this for? Like, I'm not with my daughter. I'm getting like beat up every day with this whole with this unit, and like things are not going the way I thought they would, or they have in the past. And you I think you have to really put it in perspective and see what's best for you. So at that time, the best was for you to transition out.

SPEAKER_01 12:58

Yeah. And I, you know, I told him, I said, you know, the army can replace me. I said, my daughter can't. And I said, you know, everybody else is raising her but me. And I said, It's time to go.

SPEAKER_00 13:08

I told yeah, I understand that. And that makes sense. That is true. Because you have that question of depending, especially depending on how old she was.

SPEAKER_01 13:16

She was 10, I'm sorry. And then the other thing was I was E5 promotable and I was getting ready to re-enlist. And if I was would re-enlist at that time, you would become indefinite. And I was like, no, no, no, no.

unknown 13:30

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 13:31

Yes, I totally understand that. Because mine's ended up the same way. I was a part of the 10 or less or 10 or more when I came on orders to go be an instructor. I was at 10 years and one month. And they were like, Oh, if you want this job, guess what? You're gonna have to re-enlist in depth. I was like, wait, I don't even know if I really want to do this right now. Telling me I gotta commit for 10 more years. Wait a minute. So I get that. I totally understand. Unfortunately, you know, I drank the Kool-Aid and you did not. So, but that's good. So it's I totally understand that question of where do I want my life to go and what do I want it to look like? Right. So you decided to transition out.

SPEAKER_01 14:14

What was your transition like? I transitioned, it was hard because, you know, when I got out, I was 31 years old and I had spent the first 31 years of my life in the military. That's all I knew.

SPEAKER_00 14:27

Right. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 14:28

So yeah, it was a definite struggle. Luckily, I had a support system. Okay. So it wasn't as much of a struggle as it could have been. And I know there's a lot of people that don't have the support system that I had, but I did. I kind of took the first six months off, got my unemployment, you know, just kind of, you know, enjoyed my daughter.

SPEAKER_00 14:48

Yeah. That's good. That's that's important. Yeah, to reconnect and make sure, you know, give her that time. Yeah, that's good.

SPEAKER_01 14:55

And then her grandmother said, Hey, it's time to get a job. Like, okay, you're good. You you've done your did you downtime. Let's go. So I went back to work and then when the semester started up, I went back to school and started getting my nursing degree.

SPEAKER_00 15:13

Oh, wow. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 15:15

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 15:15

That's awesome.

SPEAKER_01 15:16

What made you want to do nursing? That was my dream. I had always wanted to go to nursing school. Ever since I was a little girl, I'd wanted to be a nurse. That I had even I wanted to become a nurse while I was in the military. I wanted to transition over, but it never worked out that way. And then with me being a supply sergeant, they would never let me go to school. Yes. I was always too important. And I'm like, oh my gosh. And that was another reason why I wanted to get out because I wanted to go to nursing school. And they would never let me go to school. So yeah, I got out. And that was the first one of the first things that I did was I signed up to go to nursing school. And I graduated in 2004.

SPEAKER_00 15:53

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 15:54

I did that for eight years. Okay. And a back injury that I had incurred in the military, I had an accident and it exacerbated that injury and forced me to give up my nursing career. I've had two back surgeries.

SPEAKER_00 16:10

Wow. Yeah. So I don't know if you know this, but I don't think a lot of people know this. But I did physical therapy in the army. That was my job in the army. I was a medic first and then I went back to school for physical therapy. So I totally understand the recovery and the struggle that comes with that with starting there in the military and then transitioning into nursing. That makes it very, very difficult to do your job. So I totally understand why after that now you're gonna have to pivot again, right? Yeah. And so, like, I really want to know what that transition looked like for you because this is your dream that you've had for so long. And now, due to something pretty much outside of your control, you have to walk away from and you can't perform it. What did that time frame or time look like for you in saying goodbye to nursing and having to possibly and figuring out like what comes next?

SPEAKER_01 16:59

That was the hardest part of my life. I actually tried to commit suicide.

SPEAKER_00 17:04

Yeah. It was a dark time, huh? Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 17:07

Yeah, it was a really dark time because I lost who I was. And being a nurse was who I was, part of who I was, you know, and it was my passion. I loved being a nurse. I loved, you know, that it's my nature. I love taking care of people. I love helping people.

SPEAKER_00 17:22

I totally understand. And I can relate. I will say when I got out of the army, I was in the dark leg because the exact same thing. So I will tell you, when I was younger, I think I was nine or ten, I knew I wanted to be a medical. I knew I wanted to be a nurse or something helping other people. So I knew that that was where my my passion, my heart, that's what God called me to do. So when I joined the army and became a medic and then did physical therapy, I was like, oh, this is it. I loved, every day wasn't great, but I loved my job. And it made and that helped me get over the hard days because I knew this is what I was supposed to be doing. Um, so when I retired, I felt like I don't know who I am without the arm, without this. I don't know where I have no clue what my identity is, like, because it was so wrapped up in that part of my life. And that's all I known for all of my life. And so here I am, 40, I was 43. Like, I don't even know who I am without the arm. So I totally understand the darkness and the depression and everything that comes with how do I move forward with this?

SPEAKER_01 18:24

And so I was I still I miss the camaraderie, I miss the sense of belonging. I miss, you know, that all the things that the military life brings with it. But you know, that that environment has changed so much too. It's not even like that. You know, because my daughter served, you know, my daughter just got out back in August.

SPEAKER_00 18:42

Yeah. Oh wow. So yeah, still having that legacy of uh served. That's wonderful.

SPEAKER_01 18:46

Wonderful. Yeah, she she served for 10 years. And you know, I noticed when she served that the environment was different. The relationships and the camaraderie is, you know, it's there, but it's not like it was when I was in the military. It just seems different.

SPEAKER_00 19:03

And so, real quick, I would like to ask, when did you serve, like your time frame?

SPEAKER_01 19:07

Um, from 1992 to 2002.

SPEAKER_00 19:10

All right. That way, so I can kind of get a you know, get a glimpse of what that looked like. I joined in '98 and just retired. So yeah, but I I kind of see that overlap of we, and you know, the military transitions and it rose. And they say, I've been told, and I totally get it. You know, it's time to go when you feel like, okay, I don't understand this anymore. Right. This isn't the military I know. So it's probably time for me to transition out because it's for the younger guys. Yeah. I totally understand that. Some of the stories my daughters told me, I'm like, huh? Right. Like, are you sure you were in the military? Like, you sure? Because that does not sound very military to me at all. Like, that's not the army I served in.

unknown 19:50

Uh-uh.

SPEAKER_00 19:51

At all. So I will ask that. So from that transition from nursing to where you are now, how did you move through that? How did you process and move through that? Or moving through that still? Because I know that was still a very difficult time.

SPEAKER_01 20:04

The VA. I went through counseling. God. God is another one. God is the biggest one.

SPEAKER_00 20:12

Yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 20:13

And my husband. I'm married to a yes, married to a wonderful man for 10 years. And he has actually taught me how to love life.

SPEAKER_00 20:24

That's beautiful. Wow. I love that.

SPEAKER_01 20:27

I've learned how to take pain and turn it into power to take it and push forward instead of crumbling and falling down.

SPEAKER_00 20:37

And I know we've talked a little bit before, and it's the word that comes to mind is resilience.

SPEAKER_01 20:43

Yes, exactly. And that's why I became a woman's advocate, a woman veteran advocate, is because I know there are so many women veterans out there that feel exactly the way that I do. Yes. They feel unseen, they feel unheard, and they don't have the strength or they don't know how to voice how they're feeling, or they don't know how to be heard. So I want to be that voice. And I want them to feel like I'm a safe place for them to come and talk to. It doesn't have to be about finances, it can be about anything. If you need to talk, hit me up. I'm here.

SPEAKER_00 21:22

I'm gonna be your battle buddy, you know. Yeah. I will say that is definitely one of the biggest reasons I started this podcast.

SPEAKER_01 21:29

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 21:29

It's because there's so many women who don't have a voice and don't know who to turn to. And because we take as a woman, we take so many things in and we just internalize so much. And when it's our turn for someone to reach out, we're always a person reaching out to everybody else and taking care of everybody else. But who takes care of us? Who makes sure that we're okay, that mentally, physically, and just check in. And so I don't see just having retired and everything. I didn't see a lot of that. I didn't see a lot of. Like, let's support each other. Let's take let's let's check in on each other and make sure we're okay.

SPEAKER_01 22:04

They have so many things for male veterans out there. It's not even funny.

SPEAKER_00 22:11

It's me. But who talks about the women?

SPEAKER_01 22:14

We it's like we're invisible.

SPEAKER_00 22:16

Yeah. Like you served, you did your time. Okay, cool. Now go off into the sunset. You're good.

SPEAKER_01 22:22

Even like the wounded warriors and you know, all these other organizations. I'm like, where are the female veterans at? I don't see you act like we're not dying out here on the battlefield.

SPEAKER_00 22:32

Exactly. Or in our homes. They like you said, they have thoughts of suicide. They commit suicide like anybody else. Yeah. They've been through those same things. So bringing awareness. I love the fact that you're bringing awareness that and giving them a safe place to land and a safe space is so important. Um, so let's talk about what you currently do now when you shifted from nursing to your current field. Let's how'd you get into this?

SPEAKER_01 22:58

My stepdaughter came to me with this opportunity to sell life insurance. Okay. At first it was just about covering my family, you know, because you know, in this family, nobody has life insurance, nobody knows about finances, and so it was just about educating them about, you know, finances. But then I really got into it and I started learning about it. And I'm like, wow, what an opportunity. Oh my gosh. There's so much that I could do to educate veterans, women. I said, not only just with insurance, just financially, to make sure that they're protected and they know how to go for because women, just like you said, we make sure everybody else is taken care of. But do we make sure we're taken care of? Is our name on the lease? Exactly.

SPEAKER_00 23:51

You know where you know where the accounts are, you know where the important papers are and who to call if something happens, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 23:59

Right. Do you have all your ducks in a row? You're making sure everybody else does, but do you have all your ducks in a row? Because if the rug gets pulled out from underneath you, you're the one that's gonna be left holding the bag. And you gotta make sure you're prepared. Exactly. Because nobody is gonna protect you like you.

SPEAKER_00 24:18

Exactly. And you'll realize no one's coming to save you either. No, so you're gonna have to figure this out. And loyalty is not protection. That is very true statement. I love that statement. Loyalty is not protection, it's not yes, and I've learned that the hard way.

SPEAKER_01 24:32

You can think the person loves you, it can be your daughter, and she can turn around and serve you an addiction notice without even telling you.

SPEAKER_00 24:39

Yep. Get it in the mail or somebody serving you, yes, and you're not even sure. Like, I don't even know what happened. I just know my world is changing and I don't even know. And so I think what you're doing is amazing. Talk a little bit more about the I guess what's your favorite part of it?

SPEAKER_01 24:57

My favorite part is educating women and seeing them confident in their financial future, knowing that, you know, that they know when they walk out of my office that they're financially set. They have savings in place, or they at least have a plan in place.

SPEAKER_00 25:18

Right.

SPEAKER_01 25:18

You know, that they know that, you know, six months down the road, they've got an emergency plan in place and they've got a savings, you know, a regular savings plan in place, they've got life insurance, they've got retirement, all of those things in place so that if something happens and then they've got all their legal documents in place. I have a checklist that I give people so that you know they can go through and make sure they have all their legal documents in place, you know, and anybody's free to ask me for it. It's free of charge. Anybody is is free to ask me for a free consultation. I don't call, I don't charge any money for that. I will go over your finances with you and make sure you have everything in place. That's my job. Wonderful. Thank you for that. Just want to make sure that you're protected. It's called an assessment. I just want to make sure that you have if everything is the way it should be, then we leave it as it is. And I don't touch anything. Right. I just want to make sure you're good. That's it.

SPEAKER_00 26:19

And there's so many people who aren't good. I know growing up, for me in this little town, I knew nothing about finance, nothing about money whatsoever. So I have in the past made horrible money mistakes, not knowing about investing, not knowing about having that savings account or having an emergency fund, even though I was in the army, you still need to have those things because life happens. Cars get have issues and unexpected bills come and things happen. One of the biggest things that you talked about was life insurance. With living benefits, right? And as a person of color, it is not our thing to have life insurance. I do not understand it. And go fund me is not life insurance. Amen. That is not life insurance. And selling, I'm about to be a little country, selling fish plates and getting people to donate is not life insurance.

SPEAKER_01 27:16

You that was one of the reasons that I started selling life insurance. I was tired of doing the fish plates and the GoFundMe.

SPEAKER_00 27:24

Yes. Instead of preparing, all it takes is a little bit of preparation and it's on the financial piece of it. It's like, hey, I understand you think, oh, well, I'm throwing this money away in their mind, but this is to make sure that when you die, because guess what? We all gotta go that way. Yeah when you die, someone isn't trying to put money together to marry you. Yeah, to marry you. And so I had a personal experience. I had a few, but my nephew, who was 34 when he passed away, had nothing. Had nothing, had no insurance, had no savings, had nothing at 34. And of course, at that age, you think you're gonna live for the rest of your life.

SPEAKER_01 28:03

Right.

SPEAKER_00 28:04

However, karma, a car accident changed all of that. And it's yeah.

SPEAKER_01 28:08

And do you know an accident?

SPEAKER_00 28:10

If he would have had an accident, he would have got double. Good news. Because people don't take the time to listen and to like seek out those things and actively like, how can I make sure my family doesn't have to do these things and that I'm covering myself to make sure? And it's not for me, it's to make sure they don't have to work, they don't have to stress. Right. And so I think that it's so amazing that you are educating people on something that's so vital for us.

SPEAKER_01 28:42

And I think veterans don't realize that the BGLI is great when you first get out, but it gets very, very expensive, especially when you hit your 50s.

SPEAKER_00 28:55

Very expensive. Like hundreds, five, six, seven hundred dollars just for insurance.

SPEAKER_01 29:01

Right. And then it doesn't have any living benefits. You know, living benefits are like if you become thermal or chronically ill, your life insurance will pay out a lump sum of money while you are still living. So it will take care of you, yes. Your life insurance will take care of you while you are living. I know a lot of people think that life insurance is just about when you pass away, but it's not. Life insurance is also for the living.

SPEAKER_00 29:28

That's awesome. That's good to know. Because I guarantee you, most people don't know that.

SPEAKER_01 29:32

Right.

SPEAKER_00 29:32

Because I didn't know that. Well, I knew a little bit, but I know that the majority of people don't see it as that. And that's a great aspect of having life insurance.

SPEAKER_01 29:42

Yes, absolutely. You can get life insurance to protect the mortgage of your home.

SPEAKER_00 29:46

Yeah, yep. I knew that. I didn't know that, which is important, like these things that if you just ask questions, people would be so, you know, the information that that is out there would be so helpful. So I want to say thank you for offering up your services for free. And when we publish the podcast, I'll make sure that I put your whichever email you want me to have so people can reach out to you and email you or what platform you would like for us for me to advertise so that people can start getting their selves together and with their savings and their life insurance and all those things that are vital, not necessarily before bad things happen. Because usually it's too late when bad things happen, right?

SPEAKER_01 30:23

Yeah, and you know it life insurance is based on age and health.

SPEAKER_00 30:28

Yes, ma'am.

SPEAKER_01 30:28

So the younger you get it, the better.

SPEAKER_00 30:31

Yeah, and the cheaper it is, right?

SPEAKER_01 30:33

Yes, the cheaper, absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 30:36

Because that's a factor too. So that is awesome. Let's, as we transition into our last part, because I know you're extremely busy, so and you have a lot going on, and I appreciate that. I I always ask my guest, what is something when you were in the military or even after you transitioned out that if you could, you would tell yourself or even your daughter some advice or something that you would just kind of wish you'd known, maybe earlier in life?

SPEAKER_01 31:04

Honestly, I think I would have taken things more seriously when I was in, especially financially.

SPEAKER_00 31:10

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 31:11

Because if I had, I would have been a lot better off when I got out. And I think a lot of soldiers, because they get that guaranteed paycheck, yes, they think they're you know gravy and they get the credit card offers and all that stuff. So just be smart about your money. Yes, especially don't run into the credit card offer so fast. Save your money, you know, put some savings aside, look into the TSP and the retirement savings and keep your head about you. If you do see problems, report it. Don't be silent about it. Go to your leadership. If your leadership is not listening, then go to the next uh level of leadership. Don't be silent because when you're silent, then nothing gets done about it. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 31:55

Change can't happen if you're silent. Right.

SPEAKER_01 31:57

Because there were several times I had to go higher chains of command, and that's just the nature of the beast. But if you're silent, nothing happens.

SPEAKER_00 32:05

So sidebar real quick. What do you think about taking sharp cases out of the command's control? What are your thoughts on it? Because I have my own, but I wanted to know. So they're considering instead of if you have a sharp complaint against, you know, in your unit or whatever, instead of the command, they're absolutely I agree.

SPEAKER_01 32:26

There's too much uh buddy, you know, buddy buddy trying to cover because I saw that firsthand when I was in Korea. Yeah, they kept everything in house, and then when he left country, they took everything out of his records. And I thought that was so wrong. Yeah, that's just not. And that's how they never get caught. If you sexually harass some or sexually assault somebody, that should stay in your records. It shouldn't be an in-country thing.

SPEAKER_00 32:49

And you're absolutely correct. And I and then it amazes me of the fact that whoever handled it, the leadership, because I've been a first sergeant and I've had my commander. There's no way on God's green earth I would ever think it was okay to just squash that or erase it like it didn't happen. Yeah, clearly, there's a problem. Yeah, and that's how a lot of predators continue to stay in the military because someone is, oh well, that's just here. No one else needs to know. No, someone else needs to know. The the incoming command needs to know who they're getting. The soldiers need to know who they're getting. And clearly, for me, now I know it's a rule now. If you have any type of sexual harassment and definitely assault, you're done. Which I agree. Yeah, you should be. You hands down should be. And the fact that it has gotten to the point that we have to consider other people to rule and to investigate these things is insane. But I understand why. It's because there's so much, let me cover for my buddy. Let me, let me, you know, oh, and they're prime excuse. Oh, but he's a good soldier. Yeah, yeah. He's a great, he's a hard worker, he's a great leader. Yeah. Well, evidently there's something broken somewhere. Exactly. There's definitely something broken in that it's not an excuse because they did something that is very unacceptable, that it's okay because, oh, they're a good soldier. They get excellent scores on their PT test, and they're the hard worker. That doesn't make it okay. So I wanted to pose that question to you, especially because you have been in that scenario. If I remember correctly, um, they were considering taking it outside of the military completely and having civilians do it. I am kind of on board for that. I say I can see it, but it definitely doesn't need to be in the command. Not all. No, no, no, no.

SPEAKER_01 34:33

And the crazy thing was the first job that I got after I got out of the military, I was an office manager for a guy that ran an oil company. It was just a small little company, it was just me and him. And he ended up sexually harassing me. So after that, I couldn't work for a man long time. And I can't have a male doctor. I don't trust having a male doctor because of that.

SPEAKER_00 34:56

I just yeah, that level of insecure, like that just brings out a level of uncertainty. Like, you don't want to put yourself in that position again. It's 24 years later, and it's still a good thing. Yeah, and it's still happening. That's the sad part. It still affects you now, and because it's still happening, yeah, you know, thank God more people are more women are speaking out and men, because it happens to men too. Yeah, more people are speaking out about it and letting it be known. But it's still sad that people feel like it's a to violate someone's space or their body or anything for whatever reason. And it's very heartbreaking that people feel like that's still appropriate when it is absolutely not. Right.

SPEAKER_01 35:34

So and then, like my command in Germany, when I was going through, you know, because I was being accused of sleeping with another soldier there, and not like by the command, but by the other soldiers and stuff, you know. Oh, okay. I ended up threatening suicide there. And just the environment from the chain of command, they made me feel like a criminal. Instead of treating me like a soldier that needed help, they made me feel like I was a criminal, like I was a crier. And victim blaming? Yeah, like I was making a big deal out of nothing, you know, like they do to all women. Like when we complain about something, like we're making a big deal out of nothing.

SPEAKER_00 36:16

Like our feelings aren't valid, right? Our perspective doesn't matter, and that, oh well, you should, and I hate to say it this way, shut up in color. Right. Instead of, hey, I have a true concern here, right? And I'm tired of being quiet. Exactly. And I'm tired of not being heard. Everybody deserves to be heard, everything. And that's sad that people felt that way. And I and that's why I asked your time frame of being in, it has shifted, but I know it hasn't shifted nearly as much as we would want to or should have. But speaking out about it and having it known and letting others know it's okay to use your voice and to be heard. It is absolutely okay, and that is your right to be heard. And if it's not getting heard through your command, then they have other resources. They have IG, they have other ways that you can now. I love the fact that every unit has a sharp assigned there, so that they're putting measures in place to make sure you have the resources you need to be heard and for your concerns to be heard and uh voice. So I think that's great. I hate to call him my best friend because he'll hear this and be like, Oh, I'm her best friend. Because he gives so much crap about it. But my best friend says everybody has a superpower, right? So what is your superpower? What's that thing that makes you that you're so good at that people just kind of recognize, or you know, like I that's my thing. So what's your superpower?

SPEAKER_01 37:36

My superpower? I'm everybody's rock, I guess. I'm just there. I'm there. You're the go-fit.

SPEAKER_00 37:42

And I am that for a lot of people. That is a lot. It gets very weighty.

SPEAKER_01 37:49

So it's nice to feel needed in some ways, but yeah, it can get overwhelming. It can get overwhelming sometimes.

SPEAKER_00 37:55

And so when you feel overwhelmed, what are some of the things that you do to help you try and take that stress off or try and realize, like, hey, I'm only one person, I can only do so much, and just to kind of come back to who you are and recenter yourself.

SPEAKER_01 38:09

I do some me love.

SPEAKER_00 38:10

Okay, I like that. I love that. Like it's some me time and some self-care. Yes, good. Yeah, that's good. I'm glad that you have that, and we all need that, especially when you're the go-to for so many people, you have to come back to center sometimes.

SPEAKER_01 38:26

Yeah. I have really learned that it's okay to take time for yourself because if you don't, you will burn out. And then you can't be there for anybody. Exactly. So even if it's just taking 15 minutes or 30 minutes to do whatever it is that I want to do before I go to bed or whatever, or I take a day to do what I want to do. It just depends on how intense things are going.

SPEAKER_00 38:55

Yeah, definitely having that me time. And I I told my friends, I was like, this year, 2026 is the year of me. So I'm doing what I want to do. I just for so long. It's always been what does the army need for me? Yeah. What does my family need for me? Yeah. What does this person need? Yeah. And I am at the point where I'm like, okay, I've done that. I'm choosing me. Yeah. I'm choosing me. And so with that, I had to let some friendships go. I had to let the relationships go and truly choose me. And it's so free when you choose you. Yes, it is. So I understand that.

SPEAKER_01 39:28

Yeah. I've had to pull back from some relationships. They're there, but I'm not as involved as I was before. Absolutely. And especially when you know you're putting in more than what you're getting out.

SPEAKER_00 39:39

Uh-huh. Amen. Thank you. Amen. So I get that. I yeah. Because when you're pouring out more than you're getting in, you're it's so one-sided and it's so eventually can become toxic. And before it gets to that point, you have to walk away. Right. That's what I had to do too. I totally understand that. Last thing, what are you currently reading right now? So I have had some guests that have some amazing books that they're reading or listening to like different podcasts. So, what's kind of your thing? Like, what books or podcasts are you currently into right now?

SPEAKER_01 40:13

I am listening to the psychology of selling. Okay.

unknown 40:19

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 40:20

But my relaxing, my relaxing reading is James Patterson Triple Cross.

SPEAKER_00 40:27

Oh, nice. Okay. I love that. I love that. Okay. So it's good that you have something that you're working on professionally, and then also something that you are that you have to like take your mind completely out of it and just focus on something that you enjoy. That's wonderful. I love that for you. Well, say this has been an amazing interview. I must say. I have had so much fun with this today.

SPEAKER_01 40:51

Me too. I've really enjoyed this conversation. And I would say that to women veterans, we shouldn't be afraid to have these conversations. Absolutely. So please come on here with Tamika. Please do. Please do. It is liberating. It really is. When you start talking about it and opening up, the frustration leaves, the anger, all of that really starts to lift when you start opening up to people, especially people, and I think that's the thing. You can't just talk to anyone. You have to talk to another veteran. You have to talk to somebody that really understands what it is that you're going through. Absolutely. So find a platform that you're comfortable in. If it's this platform or another women's veteran group, there's so many out there, but please find somebody to talk to. Don't be alone. There's so many resources. Please find somebody to talk to. Find a voice.

SPEAKER_00 41:47

Yes. Find a voice so you can, you know, be able to share your experiences and know that we are here to support you and we are all in this together. And we want you to know that we are here and we are listening here or your battle buddy or whatever you need. We are absolutely here. So thank you for that. Thank you. So, Christiane, thank you so much for joining me today. This has been an amazing conversation, and it really did not feel like that was an hour. Honestly, it didn't. I agree. And I thank you for sharing your story with me because I know you didn't have to, but I appreciate you that you did. Your story is a powerful reminder. You know, service doesn't end when we take this uniform off. You know, and it evolves and it evolves into helping others. And you have decided to do something so amazing after taking the uniform off and transitioning from nursing to now doing financial support and insurance, which is a great thing. The work you're doing with financial protection and legacy planning is incredibly important, especially for veterans and families who may not always know where to start when preparing for the future. So thank you for that. And thank you for offering your services. Because I definitely will be taking you up on those. Even though I have the insurance and all those things, I will definitely be taking you up on some of those. And to everyone listening, thank you for being a part of Pandit Conversations. If this episode resonated with you, be sure to subscribe, share it with someone who could benefit from this conversation, and help us continue amplifying stories that matter. Until next time, keep leading with purpose, keep showing up for one another, and keep the conversations handed.