this talk: is about empowering children, parents and teachers - with Jackie Wilson
I'm a shy 13yr old girl, sat in class when the teacher asks a question. I dread being chosen to answer, when I am, I go bright red, I feel sick with embarrassment, and wish I could just disappear. I feel ugly, I see so many beautiful girls and I’m not one of them, I just want to hide away. I feel so angry at the world, I don’t fit in.
I'm 45 years old, I'm married to an amazing man and have three beautiful children, I am a yoga & mindfulness teacher, empowerment coach, author, a keynote speaker, and I have created self-empowerment programmes that I deliver to children, teens, young adults, parents and educators to grow healthy minds so they can thrive in life and live their potential.
How did I achieve such a transformation? I truly feel that it has so much to do with the word BELIEVE. Look in the middle of the word and you will see the word LIE, I had created so many beliefs that I thought were true through my childhood, I am ugly, I'm not good enough, I'm not loved, I’m not important and many many more. At the age of 3 my little sister was born, and from my 3 yr old perception I believed ‘I wasn’t important’, ‘unloved’, and ‘not good enough’.
At the age of 10 my Uncle died in a tragic accident, and understandably I had no support system during that time, my parents were suffering and focussed on supporting my grandparents at the same time. No one was to blame, I was just missed. If grief is not dealt with it WILL find a way out through another channel, I became a very angry teen, I hated myself. As I became an adult, met my husband and had children, it was a difficult time for me as my limiting beliefs played out in my relationship, my anger was shared out to my husband and my children. Being a parent is probably one of the most challenging experiences we can have, especially when you have poor mental health.
Eventually I faced my struggles, and over time began my journey to recovery. I went for counselling, took up yoga, left employment and took a step into changing career, from a travel consultant to a kids yoga teacher.
Many years later, a friend asked if I wanted to be part of a pilot year long programme in self-development. I jumped at the chance and embarked on a journey which would turn my life completely around. I experienced seeing how I was affecting my life, the dramas I created, the passing down of generations of beliefs, and so much more. I felt that I had woken up to life, I discovered that life didn’t have to happen to me, life could happen for me, I just needed to paint the picture.
Since that programme, I have chosen to have life happen for me, I began piecing my jigsaw of life together little by little, becoming more self-aware, and started to make changes. I have grown my inner resources such as courage, confidence and determination, to step outside my comfort zone to overcome some of my fears such as public speaking, going on Radio and TV, delivering programmes to adults (yes that was a fear), writing a book and more.
As an empowerment coach, I currently work in schools and the community working with children, parents & educators, taking them on a journey of self-discovery so they can find their ‘treasure’ within, find their greatness, the truth of who they are. When we accept our uniqueness, and see our brilliance, and have a ‘toolkit’ to support us to navigate life’s challenges, we are more able to step into their potential, and be compassionate and empathic to others.
I believe that everyone has the ability to have successful and fulfilling lives, no matter your background, race, gender, academic ability. For me, it’s all down to mindset, having good self-belief and determination to be more than you believe you can be. Every day I continue to raise the bar for myself, to be a role model for my own children and all the children I have the pleasure of working with. I’m in a place now where I have changed my belief system to be able to say ‘I love and accept myself for all that I am – This is ME!’
I am author of the upcoming book ‘This is ME! – a journey of self-discovery for Teens’ which is due for release at the end of 2020.