Hi, I’m Susy Giddy.

When asked to write about myself, my reaction was something like ” Are you kidding me? What would I say?” Sounds like a great Coaching Question, ask a Client to write About Me. What would you want to know about me? What would I want you to know about me?

Let me try to tell you about me. On paper, I guess you would say a lot has happened in my life in particular a lot of trauma but also a lot of joy. Starting with being born to two alcoholics, experiencing the tragic death of my little brother at 14, an abusive marriage, the death of our son, a near-death car accident, living with cancer. I have raised beautiful children, fulfilled the dreams of owning my own tennis club, moving to a tropical island, owning an island, living at my favorite ski hill, marrying the great love of my life.

In all of this and then some, I have experienced the best and worst that life can serve up. I have known great despair and I have known everything in between over and over again. I have coped badly and I have coped well. I have turned to chips and wine for comfort, I have learned to feel the feelings, and most of all I have learned to live.

But what I most want you to know about me, is not the suffering or even the particulars of my trials and joys. What I want you to know about me is that I have found a way to live joyfully, to come back again and again to grace, to joy, to generosity, and to love.

And as a coach, that is my greatest gift! I know how it feels and I know how to help you Start Living! I know that because I am a Certified Life Coach and I talk the talk and walk the walk.

“To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to know that even one life has breathed easier because you have lived – that is to have succeeded.”

― Ralph Waldo Emerson

Man Never Made Any Material as Resilient as The Human Spirit

I think you need to help people get through trauma and hard times”, said my BFF one day last fall, right after our son died of brain cancer. “What are you talking about?’ I asked, dumbfounded. “Well, she said, look at all the things that happen, look at your experience with trauma, look at how Resilient you are, you are a Coach, you need to help others”.“ The world needs your voice,” said my coach Terri Hase.

Look at what you have been through. A child dying, a near-fatal car accident, and a brutal attack, to name a few, she said! You don’t just endure; you bounce forward to a new place with love, grace and joy. Yep, she said, the world definitely needs the voice of Susy Giddy on Courage and Resiliency. Humbled, I thought, hmmm, could they be right? Does the world need my voice? Hmm, maybe what I have learned will help others to navigate through trauma, adversity, the big things and the small things.

Maybe my voice will help others become more Resilient in a life that brings many ups and downs and a rapidly changing world that necessitates us all developing Resiliency! And so All About Resiliency was born.

Susy Giddy’s Journey

By Tessa Hebb

Resilience is the ability to recover from or adjust to misfortune or change. Susy’s journey over the past year and a half is an example of resilience in motion.  Hard work and determination enabled Susy to achieve one of her life goals: moving to the Caribbean with her husband, Martin.  But life doesn’t work on fairy tale endings. On October 5th, 2016, Susy’s world was literally turned upside down when she and Martin survived a life-threatening car accident.  Susy was already grieving the death of her father when this second misfortune struck. She and Martin were travelling down a Nova Scotia highway together when their car spun out of control, flipped over, and narrowly missed a bridge abutment. Thankfully, no lives were lost, but both Susy and Martin were injured in the crash, and both needed time to heal.  Less than a year later, tragedy struck again.  This time, it was the death of Martin and Susy’s son Robin after a long struggle with cancer. So, recovering from and adjusting to misfortune and change has been a key part of Susy’s life journey.

According to the American Psychological Society, “resilience is not a trait that people either have or do not have. It involves behaviours, thoughts and actions that can be learned and developed in anyone.” But, as with so many of life’s goals, learning these strategies requires a coach.  Susy’s understanding, compassion, and empathy make her a great life coach. Her own recent experience has deepened her understanding of the strategies we all need when adversity strikes.  Susy draws on helpful tools and techniques that fosters greater resilience. The result is not a fairy tale ending but a building of the strength we all need when faced with life’s ups and downs.