Meet Carra Yoder

Today we’d like to introduce you to Carra Yoder.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I grew up in Green Bay, Wisconsin. I am very much a Midwest girl at heart but always yearned for something bigger in life. I got my Associate in Veterinary Technology from Madison College and have been in the veterinary field in some form for the past 17 years. I got married at a young age, and my husband and I moved to Tampa, Florida where we ended our two-year marriage. This is where I fell into a pretty dark depression, and my binge eating disorder picked up again. I have had an eating disorder since I was in elementary school, but it was something I kept hidden until 2021. Through elementary to high school, I had anorexia and obsessed about my weight and looks. Entering college, I switched back and forth between anorexia and binge eating.

In 2016, I moved to Los Angeles to be closer to my middle brother and to get a new start. LA was so hard to get used to in the beginning, but I absolutely love living here! I obtained my BS in Marketing with a specialization in PR from Colorado State University Global at the age of 34.

In June of 2021, after a year and a half into the Covid pandemic, I had hit my lowest and was placed on a suicide hold for six days at a behavioral health center. Here, my eating disorders were finally revealed, and I was admitted to a virtual eating disorder program for four months through Reasons Eating Disorder. I had intense therapy, but overall it completely changed my life. After the program, I knew that I couldn’t go back to my 9-5 job and that I had learned that I needed to put myself first. So, I started my own company that encompasses the skills that I am great at! (Marketing, design, personal assisting, professional organization, and events). I surrounded myself with a super supportive community that helped me grow my business and helped me to deliver on two other of my dreams: a podcast and a nonprofit. I also found a huge love in crafting that helps me cope with my ED behaviors.

The first season of “The Journey Podcast” is out and available on all major podcast streaming pages. One thing I have always wanted was to change the conversation around mental health, so my podcast goes through my life journey. It focuses on my story, my community, and other people’s mental health journeys. It also focuses on my love of nature and how much it has changed my life. I am a solo hiker, camper, and backpacker.

I turned my solo blog, Jumping In Solo, into a nonprofit. I actually just got 501c3 approval! I have a lot of work to still do to get this going, but I cannot wait for what it will bring to the mental health field. The nonprofit is focused on two items: to help women, BIPOC, and LGBTQ communities the funds to obtain mental health and/or stay in care even if insurance cuts their care short. This was one thing that happened to me in my program. Insurance got to choose when I moved down in care, against my team’s wishes. This fueled a fire in me, and I did so much research about how much this happens in our healthcare system. The other area this nonprofit will focus on is healing through nature through retreats, programs, and meetups. I already had my first 12 weeks of hiking and journaling pilot program with nine women from around the US, and it was very successful!

Everything in my life has led me to these three amazing businesses/podcasts, and I am so proud!

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It has not been a smooth road, but I have come to understand that all my struggles, my peaks and valleys, have gotten me to where I am. It seems one needs to fall down to their lowest to achieve their highest in life. I don’t know why this is, but I know so many people that have gone through the same brutal fall and then risen up to their highest self. I struggled a lot of my life with people pleasing, low self-esteem, no confidence, depression, anxiety and biggest, my eating disorder. I just wanted to be liked, and that led me down a lot of roads that ended in me sacrificing myself, my health, and my mental state. I never put myself first. I didn’t see myself as important. I felt that my duty was to make sure everyone else around me was happy and loved.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I see myself as a creator. I have created my own business, podcast, and nonprofit over the past two years. I also found my artistic side when creating things to do to distract and cope with my eating disorder. I now make custom pet urns, decoupage artwork, and wood-burning artwork. I am just very proud of where I am professionally and personally, and cannot wait to see where I go from here! My business specializes in marketing, design, events, professional organization, VA, getting your to-do list done, and crafts. It’s a wide array of endeavors. I could be personally assisting in the morning and creating a webpage or marketing material in the afternoon. My days are never the same, and I absolutely love that! I have found what I am passionate about, and I love what I am doing. I love being my own boss. I would never not be my own boss ever again! It suits the life that I want to live now that I know I must put myself first. I know that may sound selfish, but truly, YOU are the most important thing in your life.

Networking and finding a mentor can have such a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
Finding my business mentor was a huge part of my growing my business. This is where the community comes in to help you. My acupuncturist actually referred me to so many wonderful people that have helped me grow, but especially to my business coach, Leslie Levito. She helped me to understand how to run my own business and make it grow. I highly recommend a business coach or mentor in general to help you through life struggles. Ask friends and co-workers for recommendations or look on social media. There are an abundant amount of amazing mentors out there.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.encompassingcreative.com
• Instagram: @encompassingcreative @jumpinginsolo_inc. @thejourneypodcastcy
• Facebook: Www.Facebook.com/encompassingcreativeendeavors

Image Credits
Main photo: credit to Xavier Mejia of Mejiatv Photo with bird of paradise: credit to Tami Rae of Tami Rae Loaded Canon