Case Study: Steph’s Journey of Overcoming Anxiety and Rediscovering Joyful Parenthood

This is a case study about Steph, a client of mine whom I worked with directly to help her overcome overwhelming stress and anxiety, minimise intrusive thoughts, and become the mother she always wanted to be!

If I was to summarise Steph’s journey, I would say it is one of rediscovering the joy in parenthood, while finding inner peace, and gaining a much calmer life. 

Here is the path that Step took to personal empowerment and parental happiness!

Let me introduce Steph

Steph is a mother of 2 young boys, 5 and 3, in her thirties. She works in a very busy, fast-pace life science company. Managing work and home life, with demanding kids and very little time to herself had just become too much.

When we first chatted, I remember her saying that her life consisted of trying to go through the day: “kids, work, kids, shop, sleep, repeat”.

Time for a change

Before Steph began working with me her life looked like this:

“Constant anxiety, intrusive thoughts, not being the mum I planned to be, I was not able to engage with my kids the way I wanted to.”

In her "discovery call" Steph continued to explain that despite her best intentions, she was constantly overthinking and was easily triggered. Her behaviour was negatively impacting her children and their behaviour sometimes reflected Steph’s inability to stay calm.

Overwhelmed by racing thoughts, she struggled to fully engage with her children and provide them with the love and attention they deserved. Steph recognised the huge gap between her intentions as a loving, caring mother and her actions.

She knew, in her heart, that she had to make a change. 

She looked at her options. It was either continuing to feel stuck, go to the doctor (and be put on antidepressants), or seek out counselling. None of this felt right to her though- she was yearning for something different.

After resonating with one of my social media posts, she considered coaching might be the avenue to explore to  work with somebody to identify and feel supported through resolving these issues. 

Steph booked a chat with me, the “discovery call”, to see if what I offered could help her… Then she made the biggest shift in her transformation: she decided to take action!

The initial transformation

Steph joined my Calm & Resilient one-to-one coaching programme and we quickly began working together on the issues that were causing her the most discomfort in her life. 

I introduced Steph to valuable and effective tools so she could start taking control of her stress and anxiety responses right away and helped her develop personal strategies to manage her anxiety and racing thoughts. 

As Steph implemented these tools into her life, she witnessed a profound shift within herself. She woke up each morning with a newfound calmness, ready to face the day with resilience and composure.

Steph says: “I am calmer and I’m not experiencing the intrusive thoughts.”

She also states: “...my approach is different and that has a ripple effect on everyone.”

The tools that Steph learned will be of use to her throughout the rest of her entire life. The more she continues to use these tools, the more benefits she will see in both herself and her relationships!

Building resilience

As the coaching programme unfolded, Steph’s internal transformation radiated into every aspect of her life. 

Despite external circumstances remaining unchanged, Steph no longer feels overwhelmed or easily triggered. 

Steph says “Coaching has given me something I just wouldn’t get anywhere else. It's a unique experience.”

Throughout this programme, Steph also learned how to shift her perspective. She discovered how to remove the aspects from her life and place boundaries around those that were making her feel anxious. She now has the ability to cultivate her own wellbeing and looks at her life with a sense of gratitude and understanding. 

Transformed parent-child dynamics

The most beautiful aspect of Steph’s journey was the positive impact it had on her relationship with her children. 

As she became more present, Steph noticed a transformation in their behaviour. 

The more she was able to remain calm in challenging situations, the more her children would reflect that behaviour. This led to fewer outbursts and a much stronger connection between Steph and her children. 

Steph not only fostered understanding but also provided them with valuable emotional skills for their own growth.

Watching the metamorphosis Steph went through has been incredible. Being by her side as she re-found joy in parenting and became a much happier person has been a wonderful experience, and I am so glad that I got to support her in her journey.

Steph finally states that “To someone who may be on the fence, just take the leap. You’re only going to gain something and have a valuable experience.”

If you want to hear from Steph herself, click to watch her full video testimonial!

And if like Steph, you feel that coaching might be an avenue to explore, why not book a no-pressure discovery call with me? 

⬇️Click below to book a chat