Welcome to the ”Let the Expert Talk” Series.

Hello Thursday, and hello Andrea Winzer. Thanks so much for being here today sharing your experience and insights with us. It is such an honor to have you here.

Let me introduce you to my readers. Andrea is a Life Coach and Spiritual Director for Reach for the Light. Her passion is to support people in moving away from negative, self-limiting, and sometimes self-destructive behavior into the full potential of a joyful, confident, authentic, passionate life by helping them realize how wonderful, powerful,  creative, and resourceful they truly are inside.

1. So Andrea, could you tell us about yourself and what you do?

I am a life coach and spiritual director, currently also working towards my ordination as interfaith minister. With the services offered by Reach For The Light, I want to support my clients in finding new hope and emotional healing by creating a safe space where they can experience non-judgmental listening and compassionate understanding. I believe that in every disappointment, every challenge, even in pain, heartbreak, grief and disease, lays a treasure that wants to be discovered and explored. We have the choice to turn these situations into chances for reflection, restructuring, and awakening.

My approach is geared to supporting my clients in finding unique solutions for their life, empowering them to make the choices that bring them joy, and helping them create a framework where they can safely explore new ways of thinking, feeling and acting so that they can live a lighter, brighter and more authentic life, just the way they imagine it to be.

My main focus areas are self care, self esteem and self love, fear and anxiety, life purpose, spiritual direction and exploration, soul journey, inner critic, shadow work, as well as grief & grievances.

2. Why did you choose to work with/for this group of women?

I am a Mom of three and have lived through the challenges of pregnancy and motherhood myself. When we focus so much (and often too much) on taking care of everybody else, our own needs and dreams wither on the vine. We lose the connection to our inner core, to our true self and slowly we slip into a state where we are taken over by our busy lives and the demands of our children, families and other obligations. This often leads to frustration, feelings of being the victim of overwhelming circumstances and can eventually develop into resentment or anger, a syndrome known as “Compassion Fatigue”, which is defined as a state of physical, mental, and emotional exhaustion.

Having painfully experienced this development myself and learned my lesson, I now want to encourage women to start taking very good care of themselves in all areas of their lives (physically, emotionally, mentally as well as spiritually). My passion is to support Moms to understand that self care is not a luxury, but a necessity for a healthy, happy, and balanced life. Self care unfortunately is still connected to feelings of guilt and shame. Therefore it is very important to foster the understanding that true self care has nothing to do with indulgence or pampering, but everything with taking back one’s very own power and taking responsibility for one’s life.

3. How does your service improve the lives of my readership?

My services improve the lives of my clients by helping them understand that they are the most important person in their life. Taking good care of themselves is not egoistic or an occasional luxury, but the foundation for a happy, balanced, and joyful life. Self care is deeply connected with great self esteem, confidence, and empowerment, which in turn makes Moms better caregivers and role models for their children and their entire families.

4. Any piece of advice for these wonderful women?

Although it sometimes seems too difficult to accommodate in our busy lives as Moms, self care should not be optional. On every airplane the safety instructions are very clear: Put on your own mask first before helping other people! The same is true for taking care of ourselves. Women especially tend to put themselves on the bottom of the list, if they are on the list at all, and I truly want to encourage all moms and women in general to start taking better care of themselves.

As unique as every person is, so are your needs, dreams, and wishes. This also applies to the area of self care. It is important to understand, learn and practice healthy self care in your very own way so you can find what works for you and what brings you happiness, peace, and balance. Since we are often stuck in old patterns, working with a coach can really support new but also experienced Moms to explore the reasons and underlying beliefs why they put everybody else first at their own expense, what they can do turn their lives around and how they can make their very own dreams come true.

5. Is there anything else that you’d like to share with us?

I am offering webinars/workshops on the topic of self care for Moms/women who would like to start exploring and embracing the topic in their lives. Please contact me via email (andrea@reachforthelight.net) for more information.

Any mom/women who signs up for coaching sessions or a webinar/workshop in April 2012, and who mentions this interview, will receive a 20% discount.

If you would like to find out more about Reach for the Light or Andrea Winzer please follow her through her blog, facebook, twitter or their website.

Thank you so much Andrea for being here today. I appreciate the time you have given us. And thank you my dear reader. I hope that you have enjoyed today’s interview. Don’t forget to come back next week for more. We will be talking with Summer Hartman, Newborn Care Specialist\Infant Sleep Consultant and founder of Sleeping Sweet Peas.

Always happy to help, the @coachformamas.