About Me

Next: I got frozen shoulder in my left arm, which turned into a bone cyst, which resulted, after three surgeries, in a titanium transplant. And because Murphy really does exist, my right shoulder froze too. So, for about nine months I had little to no use of both my arms beyond the range of elbows. I lifted my hands to the keyboard to work – yes, I’m still working eighteen-hour days. If the physical trials weren’t enough, the emotional grief during this period was devastating. In 2021, within four months of each other I lost both my parents. My Mom passed away in August and my Dad followed in December. There are no words. I can openly admit now (having been through my self-reflection and growth period) that I was a workaholic and addicted to pleasing people. I continued to work at an unhealthy pace during this entire period. On the day of my surgeries, I would be set up with pillows and my computer on my lap or taking phone calls from my hospital bed. I also didn’t stop and take time to grieve my parents. After my fourth surgery (the most painful surgery and recovery I’ve ever experienced) in January 2024, I realized that if I didn’t stop and take care of myself, I wasn’t going to be able to do the things I love for the rest of my life – surf, swim, paddle, play tennis, lift my grandkids up, etc. I hadn’t been able to surf or do an ocean swim since 2019. So, I stopped working and started short-term disability - the best decision I’ve ever made. It is why this picture of me is possible. I began a soul driven journey to discover how to integrate my mind, body, and spirit back into the woman God wants me to be - the one in the yellow shirt! Openly, freely laughing in the sun, having made simple, sustainable changes in her life to enable her to bloom where God planted her. Laughing without inhibitions is a liberating experience that allows you to fully express joy and amusement without the constraints of self-consciousness or societal expectations. Soul driven wellness afforded me a chance to get back to LOL — for real. I tried to go back to my career of 35 years as a seasoned leader – applied to so many jobs, but no takers. God said no, so he could say Yes to me sharing the tools, lessons, and steps of my soul driven wellness journey with others. If you felt even just a small nudge reading my story, check out my services by clicking the button below.

My daughter (@meganjohnsonphotographer) took this picture of me a couple of months ago. She later told me that it’s one of the few pictures that exist where I’m laughing unfiltered, uninhibited – truly free. I thought about that for a hot minute and realized that she was right. The past five years have been filled with so, so much. Starting with moving our family from Virginia to Hawaii, leaving our family, friends, and the lives we had known and moving thousands of miles across the ocean. This move caused waves we didn’t see coming. I remember telling my Dad we were moving, and he says, “If there is no way to drive there Bethy, it’s too far.” Our youngest son was a travel hockey player and Hawaii, as you might guess, isn’t the mecca for ice hockey. So, he started high school in Minnesota at a Christian school by himself at 14. (Very Worried MOM Here!)

Then COVID hit and anything that could be turned upside down flipped a thousand times. It was madness. I started a new job – huge contract, eighteen-hour days, seven days a week – CRAZY. Financial impacts of COVID were devastating. My husband lost his job, the move from Virginia cost us quadruple of what it was estimated, our renters in Hawaii didn’t have to vacate so we had to pay to live in temporary housing for four months (at COVID prices), and Drew’s school ended up going virtual. Things were tough, but we carried on - smiles were forced; laughs were out of pure exhaustion and just not knowing what to expect next.