Virtual Campfire #17: Michelle LeRoy, Kristina Italic, Victoria Amico

I didn't know it at the time, but 10 years ago today, I started my healing journey. It started with a choice. A choice I made for myself, by myself, without any outside influence from friends, family, or colleagues. A choice made independently of any expectations I had been trying to meet. Ten years ago today, I made my way from my office at my swanky agency job in Chicago out west to rural Illinois to a little town off of Highway 30, eventually arriving at a skydiving center. I had decided I wanted to learn how to skydive by myself, not attached to an instructor.

After falling feet-knees-face into the grass after exiting my vehicle, I walked into a tiny airplane hangar and met my instructor, Barry. Over the course of the next four hours, this man taught me how to save my own life. He met me where I was. He was kind. He was also devastatingly handsome and I loved him instantly, but it felt different from anything I had experienced before. I drove home from that skydiving class and knew I was forever changed. This was the man I would eventually marry. Barry was the first person I trusted enough to share my survivor story with. He's put me back together through broken bones, broken spirit, and a broken heart. Hiking My Feelings would not exist today without him. Frankly, neither would I. He saw me then, he sees me now, and I finally feel like the woman I've always known I could be.

Tonight, we celebrate healing and what it means to step into yourself and become fully embodied.

Join us around the Virtual Campfire as we chat with Kristina Italic, Michelle LeRoy and Victoria Amico. These women have all been an integral part of my journey as Sydney, and our journey as an organization here at Hiking My Feelings. If you're feeling trapped in your body, completely disconnected, and you're ready to come home to yourself, we hope to see you around the fire.