Today we’d like to introduce you to Judy Stella.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Judy. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
As a young child, I endured many years of physical, verbal and emotional abuse. My earliest childhood memory (age of five) is running away from my mother because I was frightened by her wrath and threats to hurt me. But the abuse did not end there. At ten years old, I mustered the courage and disclosed to my mother that I had been sexually abused, in hopes of stopping the abuse with me and to protect my younger siblings. When I was 16, I became pregnant and suffered a miscarriage that led me to end my relationship with my boyfriend at that time. He also verbally and emotionally abused me during our three years together. For nearly half of my life, I had experienced multiple forms of abuse from family and friends, people who loved me.
It was during my senior year in high school that I immersed myself into my education and met a college counselor that would take me under his wing. He guided me and supported me throughout my college years and encouraged me to apply for graduate school. It was during this time that I discovered the Social Work profession and I knew instantly that it was exactly what I wanted to do. My passion to help and add value to others was my calling and committed to share my story in hopes to make a difference in people’s lives. For six years, I worked as a Psychiatric Social Worker providing mental health services for children and parent support groups in Los Angeles.
After marrying my husband and having two children, I felt the urge to explore a new career path. I ventured into Entrepreneurship and worked as the Business Development Manager at our family-owned business. It was through this experience and the many years in helping others that I decided to launch Pivotal Choices with Judy Stella.
My purpose in creating this new organization is to encourage others to believe in themselves, to live up to their fullest potential, and make pivotal choices that will lead them to living a life of significance.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
There have been many struggles along the way. Throughout my life, I have experienced depression and anxiety because of the trauma and abuse I endured as a child. For many years, I had low self-esteem, I made a lot of poor choices as a young adult and carried a heavy load of guilt and shame that did not belong to me. I remember how I felt on my first day in college, feeling inadequate and afraid of failing in school. I suffered the loss of a pregnancy at such a young age and did not process the loss and grief until 20 years later. It has been through my own personal healing journey that I have experienced what true self-love and self-acceptance is and enjoy a more abundant life today. I feel extremely grateful for the wonderful human beings that have been placed in my life and offered their encouragement, support, and unconditional love. It is my vision today to continue to share my story in hopes that it will encourage others to believe in themselves and follow their dreams.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Pivotal Choices – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
I am the Founder of Pivotal Choices, a community where individuals can feel supported to embark on a journey for personal growth and transformation. Being both a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and a John Maxwell Certified Trainer and Coach, I have successfully launched various masterclasses that offer the tools and insights to helping others grow and live up to their fullest potential. Sharing my own personal story has allowed me to connect with others who are searching to improve their lives and live a life of significance. I love to encourage others by offering my support, helping them see fear and adversity as steppingstones for their future success. I am most proud of my own journey of personal healing, my passion to break generational cycles of trauma and my commitment to be a life-long learner. What sets me apart is the insights, tools and resources that I have experienced and gained. They were the catalyst to my growth and healing. There is nothing that I would share with others to do that I have not personally done myself first.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
My vision for the future is to continue adding value to others by offering in-person masterclasses on personal growth and leadership development. I would love to continue sharing my story with other young women that can relate to my struggles and offer them my support and encouragement. I look forward to searching for all the angels that crossed my path and made a difference in my life. I would love to personally thank them and express my gratitude. Lastly, I plan to begin writing a book about my life story and sharing how through my adversity, pain, and suffering; I was able to experience one of the most beautiful miracles in my life.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.judystella.com
- Email: info@judystella.com
- Instagram: @judystella
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2685440601677126
Image Credit:
David Martin Jr. Photography
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