I Chose Myself—and Everything Changed

From 30 Years in a Toxic Marriage to Dream Doula and First Class to Paris

For 30 years, I lived inside a story that looked like Shangri-La on the outside—but was literally eating me alive from the inside out, one unspoken need and one broken promise at a time.

I was married to a man who could not or would not change, and I was the woman who kept trying to hold 50 Shades of Crazy all together. Not just for me—but for our family, our future, and a version of love and loyalty I desperately wanted to believe could be healed.

But here’s what I’ve learned…Marriages don’t collapse overnight.

They unravel slowly.

One broken promise.

One unkind word.

One deflection and refusal to take accountability at a time.

And at some point, I had to ask myself a very different question—not about love, or vows, or whether he would change—but about me.

Was I willing to keep tolerating the very things I’d tell another woman to walk away from?

It was in that mirror of truth that I found my answer.

So, after 30 years, I left.

Not because I had a plan.
Not because I had savings.
Not even because I felt brave.

I left because I could no longer betray myself.

There was no time to be overwhelmed.
My adult son with special needs was now solely dependent on me.

I was briefly homeless. I was exhausted but clear. Determined and hopeful.

I remember someone asking me gently, “Aren’t you afraid of being alone?”

My answer came without hesitation:

No. I’m more afraid of settling for less and never becoming who I was always meant to be.

I wrote my next chapter before I ever lived it.

I journaled my future home—light-filled, within my budget, with a kitchen island and two fireplaces—and six months later, I was living in it.

My rent? Exactly five dollars under my budget.

Not because I manifested it by magic… but because I believed in what I could become, even before it made sense to anyone else.

I didn’t wait until I “had it all together” to start healing. I did the work while I was still in the fire.

Prayer. Meditation. Breathwork. Yoga. Journaling. A phenomenal therapist.

And a circle of women who saw me, held me, and reminded me that I was already whole.

That healing? That’s what created my brand.
That journey? That’s how I became the Dream Doula.

Because everything I now teach—every client I now attract—came from the very transformation I lived through.

I’ve gone from a woman who was suffocating in her own home…
To a woman who speaks on stages, shares stories, and changes lives.

From being houseless…

To flying First Class to Paris and the French Riviera, living out the vision I had almost abandoned.

So no—I’m not a life coach.

I’m a story healer. A griot. A guide. A dream doula.

I don’t just teach women how to “build a brand.”
I teach them how to live a story worth telling.

Because the moment you stop performing for approval…
The moment you stop rescuing others at the cost of yourself…
The moment you choose to listen to that inner knowing that has never steered you wrong…

That’s when your real life begins.

Today, as my mother transitions into her final days in hospice in my home, I feel the full circle of this journey.

The woman I had to become to leave that marriage is the same woman who can now hold space for grief, beauty, peace, and presence.

The daughter.
The mother.
The healer.
The guide.

All of her lives in me now.

And if you're reading this…
If you're feeling the whisper in your soul that says, “It’s time to choose you,”

I want you to know…that pain and discomfort that you’re feeling…

You’re not broken. You’re birthing.

And I’m here to help you write the story only you can tell.

Because your dreams are the roadmap to your destiny.

And yes—if you’re ready, I’ll walk that road with you.

Think Big and Dream even BIGGER.

—Roz 💛

📌P.S. If you’re in a season of transition and quietly wondering, “What comes next?”

I created something just for you. Comment below or DM Story25 and I’ll send you the details to join the waitlist.