Amazing stories.

In 2022, I lost my executive role. A private equity buyout swept through the company, and with it, my seat at the table was gone. After years of leading, building, and delivering results, I suddenly found myself on the outside—résumé polished, hopes high—yet the job market stayed silent.

The winter of 2023 brought a different kind of call—not from a recruiter, but from my father. He had taken a bad fall near his home overseas and needed live-in care. I was the first to go among my siblings. I put the job search on hold and flew out to be by his side. That season taught me a lot: about patience, about sacrifice, and about the kind of love that doesn’t clock out.

By the fall of 2024, I finally landed a new job. I was grateful—hopeful, even. But not long after, my father’s health declined rapidly. I flew out again—this time to say goodbye. I stayed in a weekly apartment near his hospice and worked U.S. hours, still showing up, still committed, because that’s who I am. In October, he passed. A few weeks later, in November, I was terminated—without warning.

It felt like the floor dropped out again. At my age, in today’s job market, even landing an interview feels like a miracle. But somewhere in the grief, something shifted.

While I continue to seek meaningful employment, I’ve also decided to use my God-given talents and passion to build a business—one that helps people and creates a revenue stream of my own. I stopped waiting for someone else to give me permission to move forward. I chose to invest in WA. Not just financially, but with all of me—my passions, my experiences, my mistakes, my skills, and my purpose.

This isn’t just a business. It’s a redemptive act. A way to turn loss into legacy. A way to build something that allows me to be more present, more generous, and more aligned with who I was made to be.

That’s why I’m here. Not just to earn—but to serve. Not just to work—but to walk in calling.

https://skillfulpraisebass.com/

I see that I shared my post in the wrong place, so quite late; but here we go...

In 1995, I had an emotional breakdown that led me to eventually becoming homeless for a number of years. I was initially hospitalized for weeks at a time, but eventually; the doctors were able to identify the root cause of my erratic emotions, and those diagnoses led to many years of outpatient care.

Bipolar and PTSD were more easily addressed than the complicated diagnosis of DID, which is dissociative identity disorder, and that was formerly called MPD, or multiple personality disorder.

The knowledge of DID was scarce at that time, so being the nerd girl that I am, I spent hours at the public library so I could research treatment for the diagnoses that were causing so much pain in my life.

The internet had only been around for about three years at that time, and the computers I used at that time are now dinosaurs. Internet connections were dial-up., and oh, my gosh... I can still hear the whir of that ancient dial-up sound and the sing-sound tones of windows connecting!!

In those days, treatment discussions for DID were very clinical, and I was continually asking for someone who could talk with me about how to deal with the symptoms I was experiencing.

Blackouts, amnesia, and losing time were terrifying realities, and I remember my desperate search for someone to talk to. Someone who had BEEN THERE, DONE THAT... and could offer realistic, practical insight that would help me with everyday life as what was then known as being a "multiple."

With every hospitalization, I kept asking for someone to talk with... over and over and over; but those with DID recovery experience were few and far between.

Memories of that panic and desperation are the reason I continue to use the power of the internet to tell my story, and help raise awareness about the painful process of emotional healing.

The desperation I felt is why I love to reflect on the growth and healing I have experienced since that time, because my knowledge of these health conditions has undergone a transition that mirrors the development of our modern day transition into 5G and AI capabilities!

Many years of therapy have helped me overcome the rejection, abandon, and abuse issues that were at the core of my injuries, and I have come to realize that the knowledge I gained during my recovery is exactly the voice of the person I was begging to talk with when I experienced such a horrific emotional breakdown.

Even though the world of technology has advanced to unimaginable levels, the discussion of arrested childhood development that is rooted in abuse are still awkward topics for many people to discuss.

Years of doing the hard work of trauma therapy has forged deep layers of resilience and passionate compassion for others who are still silenced by the stigma that is still too prevalent in our modern world.

There is great joy in being set free from decades of the shame and humiliation that are the hallmark of failure to thrive, so it has become my great joy to choose "ACEs Recovery" as my area of expertise and niche content.

When I discuss crisis behavioral health care now, it is from the perspective of the person who has "BEEN THERE, DONE THAT..." and it is so validating to now be able to offer the practical tips and truths that helped bring peace of mind about my need for psychiatric health care.

Psych care can be terrifying for everyone, but it is particularly painful for those with strong religious perceptions that often add insult to the injury of seeking to heal from life experiences that were rooted in trauma.

I know, I realize, I recognize that these topics are awkward at best... but that is EXACTLY the reason I have chosen to now share the lessons I learned during the days of my own painful recovery process.

The high tech world of Wealthy Affiliate is the dream machine that makes it possible for me to share my passion for art as therapy support with a global audience.

Using the combination of art and technology has been my greatest recovery tool, because it has given me the ability to overcome religious shaming and artfully express the beauty of emotional healing I discovered in God's word to me.

I am thrilled to be launching my new business on the platform of WA, and the foundation of a newfound ability to trust that my voice, my life, and my thoughts about psych care are valuable, not only from a business standpoint, but also from the personal perspective I yearned for when my own healing journey began.

It has taken time to harness my thinking lines, so I'm very excited to begin to engage in the training modules that I have been unable to engage with until now.

Can you imagine the report I will be able to share after of year of engaging in the WA training?!! I look forward to sharing THAT story with you... as well as pictures of the business that I believe is destined to become the brick and mortar reality I have dreamed of for such a very, long time.

This is the current culmination of what I call... "The Lifetime Adventure of God's Word To Me, and I am grateful that I didn't miss the announcement about the weekly challenge that gives me opportunity to answer this question!!!"

(I know this is lengthy, but... I cannot pare it down any further than this.)

I'm a little late to this challenge to collect likes, I have been away for a funeral, so I'll keep it short and sweet.

I've always known I wanted to create something awesome online, but my real turning point was the birth of my first child in 2016. From that moment on I knew I never wanted to 'need' to work at a traditional job to survive and provide for my children.

I ended up as a single mother to two little girls and living off the government benefits, I tried to pick up little jobs here and there but juggling that and the kids was far too difficult.

Anyway, I knew I wanted to have the flexibility of working online with limitless possibilities; I didn't want to be limited to a salary or hourly rate.

Now I'm in a much better position and working towards retiring my husband so we can both be home with the kids and live the lifestyle of our dreams.

Affiliate marketing and the online space is truly a limitless avenue to create wealth on your terms. If you set your mind to it, you can do it.

With the support of Wealthy Affiliate and the awesome community here anything is possible.

Thanks Kyle and the team!

I got my first computer in 1997. I knew nothing about computers, the internet, or internet marketing. However, almost immediately after firing up my first computer, I made my first purchase online from a start-up company by the name of Amazon.

I bought a book with the title of, something to the effect of internet 101, although I don’t remember the actual name of the book. At that time, Amazon only sold books, but shortly thereafter declared that one day they wanted to be able to sell everything people wanted to buy via the internet.

For me, that was a novel concept at the time but, that’s when I first began thinking that I’d like to be able to make money with and from my computer.

Well, Amazon has done quite well. I, on the other hand, let’s just say, haven’t done as well as him (Jeff Bezos).

From 2001-2003, I worked for a catalog computer components company by the name of Global Computer. I sold computers and everything that goes in or with computers.

My fascination with computers and the realization that people were making money via their computers became more and more intriguing to me.

Fast forward to 2006, the year I began teaching. That was when my use of computers and computer-related technology went from simply sending email and aimlessly surfing the web, to the next level.

Meanwhile, I found myself more and more regularly buying things online. By then, I began asking myself why I’m not making money online. I knew people were making big money online but I had no idea how to do it or where to look for help.

Then, in 2012, for the second time in my six years of teaching, budget cuts cost me my job. I was not rehired for the following year.

I saw an ad in the paper (I still subscribed to a real newspaper then) about a “free” event that was hosted by a company by the name of Live Out Loud (LOL). I went. It was at that event, when I realized that everything was about online marketing. Although I didn’t realize it at the time, it was really about affiliate marketing. However, I had not yet heard the term affiliate marketing.

In any case, I believed I was in the right place and got caught up in all the hoopla that was being pitched. I was not in a position to pay the amounts of money that were being charged for the classes being pitched.

But, it was then, in mid 2012 when I believed my days as a teacher were over that I made up my mind that I was going to become an internet mogul. I didn’t figure there was a big market for 58 year old teachers who’d received two pink slips in six years.

I believed I could figure out how to become the mogul I envisioned. I purchased my first domain/website from VistaPrint for $20 and set out on my journey to take the internet by storm and become the next great internet marketer.

However, I had no idea what the difference between a domain and website is, or what a keyword is, although I figured it couldn’t be that complicated. I had absolutely no idea how to build a website but, again, I thought I could figure it out.

After two years of getting absolutely nowhere, I had been receiving phone calls from LOL pretty regularly trying to sell me one of their programs. However, on that particular day, I saw an ad on their website about a program called the “100K Challenge” that guaranteed I’d make 100K in one year if I followed their program.

I held my nose and charged nearly $8000 to my credit card and signed up. I figured the 8 grand would be a drop in the bucket compared to the 100 grand I’d make. (I can’t believe I’m admitting this but it’s true.)

I ended up spending more than $15K with all the upsells and other BS I didn’t need. To make a long story short (I know, it’s too late for that), I ended up taking them to small claims court and suing them for the maximum $10,000 that is allowed in the state of Nevada, where LOL’s headquarters were located. I initially won but they appealed and I lost.

During that time, in March, 2015, someone I met through LOL, who I’d developed an online “mastermind” group relationship with, to whom I mentioned that I wish there was someplace I could learn about internet marketing without going broke in the process. I was sent what I soon realized was an affiliate link to none other than Wealthy Affiliate.

I liked the name and the fact that I could try it out for a week for free before spending any money. I upgraded to premium on day 6 of my seven day free look.

I wish I could say, it’s been rainbows and unicorns ever since but, that is simply not the case.

My focus was on making 100 grand a year.

That’s it!

I watched the training, created my first website and was off to the races.

I had no idea what a niche (neesh) was. I always thought it was called a (nitch). I had no idea that a niche and target market are not the same thing.
I could go on and on about my journey in WA but I will wrap it up by saying it took me leaving WA three different times, and returning a second, third, and fourth time in 2021 before finally realizing, not only what a niche is, but what my niche is. It took me until this year, just short of 10 years, in and out of WA, to finally focus on just one niche, one target market, one website, follow the training as closely as possible, to the letter, and allow myself the time it takes to actually build a business.

The bottom line is, everything I need is here in WA and always has been. I could be wrong. I like to think I’ve finally gotten out of my own way. My way hasn’t, doesn’t, and probably never will work. I’m not stupid, but I’m not as smart as I thought I was. I’m doing my best to follow directions.

The journey continues.