A comeback story for every mom who’s drowning, exhausted, and convinced she’ll never feel like herself again.
If you’re reading this, there’s a good chance you’ve had a season — or years — where life didn’t just knock you down… it sat on your chest, stole your breath, and dared you to get back up.
And this past year?
It didn’t just knock me down.
It flattened me.
I’m talking wheezing, crying, rage-cleaning, hole-in-the-wall flashbacks, lying-in-bed-asking-what’s-the-point level heaviness. The kind of burnout that doesn’t whisper — it screams and drags your body with it.
And because I know you’ve had your own version of this too, I’m going to tell you exactly what happened to me. The whole truth. Not the cute online version. The real, messy, mold-infested, identity-crushing breakdown that forced me to stop, swear, cry, and eventually rise back up.
Why?
Because the only thing worse than drowning… is drowning alone.
So pull up a chair, mama.
Here’s what really happened — and how it led me back to myself.
The Mold That Broke Me (Literally)
It started with a toilet overflow.
Nothing dramatic. No waterfall. No flood. Just enough water to seep through the ceiling… and apparently, enough to grow a f***ing ecosystem in my house.
Two weeks later, I started wheezing.
Not “I have allergies” wheezing.
I mean gasping-for-air-in-the-bathroom-at-work-thinking-I-was-having-a-heart-attack wheezing.
And for months — MONTHS — I kept saying:
“There is mold in this house. Something is wrong.”
But life kept life-ing. Kids needed things. Aging parents needed me. Work needed me. Autism motherhood demanded everything from me. And because moms are apparently required to survive on 1% battery and vibes, I just kept pushing.
Eventually?
I landed in the ER.
Chest tight. Heart racing. Unable to breathe. I was terrified. And angry. And humiliated. And still wheezing.
And when I finally spent a week away in a hotel and felt better, that was the moment I knew I wasn’t crazy. It wasn’t “just asthma.” It wasn’t “stress.” It wasn’t “in your head.”
It was f***ing mold.
We had the house tested — and boom.
Not just mold.
HIGH levels.
In BOTH upstairs bathrooms.
My bathroom — the one that never even overflowed — was the worst.
And as much as I hate admitting it…
the “I told you so” burned.
It burned hot.
My Body Broke Down — and So Did I
I used to work out five days a week.
Strong. Fit. Capable.
Climbing stairs without gasping.
Now?
Stairs feel like climbing Everest.
Any fast walk and I have to stop mid-sentence to catch my breath.
Every specialist shrugged.
One didn’t even look at my lungs — just threw steroids at me and sent me away like I was overreacting.
Honestly?
That shattered me.
It wasn’t just physical.
It was emotional.
It was identity-shaking.
I felt useless.
Broken.
Heavy.
Depressed.
Angry.
Invisible.
And on top of that?
I’m still a mom.
I’m still an autism mom.
I’m still the house manager, the emotional support human, the IEP bulldozer, the crisis diffuser, the caretaker for elderly parents… ALL while working a brutally physical 3rd-shift job that requires lungs I didn’t currently have.
There were days I couldn’t sweep the damn floor without wheezing.
Days where I stood in the kitchen and thought:
“Is this just who I am now? Broken? Weak? Done?”
And that… that thought scared me.
The Rage No One Talks About
Here’s the thing about chronic stress + burnout + sickness + grief:
It turns into rage.
Not always yelling rage (though yes, that too).
Sometimes it’s quiet rage.
Depressed rage.
“Walking through the house wanting to rip the walls down because no one listened to you and now your whole body is paying the price” rage.
I had moments where I wanted to scream:
“I’m the mom — I’m supposed to protect my kids, not expose them to this!”
I spiraled into guilt.
Then anger.
Then shutdown.
Then depression.
Repeat.
And I know, deep in my bones, that you’ve had your version of this too.
Different story, same ache.
The Text That Snapped Me Out of the Dark
And then one day…
My phone buzzed.
A message from a mom:
“Hi, I am in need of IEP advocating for my daughter. Are you still practicing this?”
I stared at that text like someone had opened the blinds in a dark room.
A few days later, another friend said she had given my info to a mom who needed holistic support for her autistic child’s behavior.
And something inside me… cracked open.
Helping them lit something up in me that had been dead for months.
It reminded me of EVERYTHING I am:
✨ A damn good IEP advocate
✨ A mom with over 17 years of autism-parent experience
✨ A woman who believes deeply in natural, nervous-system-based healing
✨ Someone who has LIVED the meltdowns, the rage, the holes in the wall
✨ A voice for moms who feel like they’re drowning
✨ A provider of tools — hemp, self-regulation, personal growth — that actually change lives
✨ And someone who has ALWAYS used her raw honesty to help other moms feel less alone
Their messages didn’t just ask for help.
They reminded me who the hell I am.
I wasn’t done.
I wasn’t broken beyond repair.
I was just buried.
And now?
I’m clawing my way back.
Here’s The Part You Need to Hear: You’re Allowed to Come Back Too
You may not have mold.
You may not have wheezing.
But I KNOW you’ve been buried under something:
Burnout
Depression
Marriage struggles
A child in crisis
Financial stress
A shrinking sense of self
A health scare
A job draining you dry
A body that quit cooperating
A partner who didn’t listen
A school that dismissed you
A life that stopped feeling like yours
And maybe you’ve been telling yourself the same lie I told myself:
“This is just how I am now.”
No, mama.
It’s not.
You are not done.
You are not broken.
You are not weak.
You are not failing.
You are not behind.
And you are NOT meant to disappear in the name of survival.
You are simply in a season that has stretched you past your limit — and it’s time to come home to yourself.
Healing Isn’t Pretty, but It’s Possible
Let me be clear:
I’m not healed.
I’m healing.
I’m still wheezing.
Still climbing stairs like a Victorian widow with a fainting couch.
Still dealing with specialists and inhalers and recovery.
Still rebuilding my strength and my confidence.
Still wrestling with rage and grief and guilt.
But I’m also…
✨ back on my holistic tools
✨ regulating my nervous system
✨ showing up for the moms who need me
✨ reclaiming the spark I lost
✨ rebuilding my strength
✨ sharing my story (because honesty heals)
✨ reminding myself daily: I AM NOT DONE
Healing is not clean or linear.
It’s messy.
It’s emotional.
It’s embarrassing at times.
But it’s happening.
And if I can come back after several months of breathing f***ing mold…and still wheezing a YEAR later.
YOU can come back from whatever you’re buried under too.
So Here’s What’s Coming — For Me AND for You
I’m back.
Not perfect.
Not polished.
But RAW, honest, fiery, and with purpose.
Here’s what I’m bringing back into the world:
🔥 Weekly blog posts
🔥 Daily Instagram posts
🔥 Holistic tools for calm + sleep + anger
🔥 IEP advocacy and guidance (my roots!)
🔥 My free 12-page IEP Guide for moms needing immediate support
🔥 A 7-day personal growth trial for moms needing a lifeline
🔥 Stories, reels, honesty, humor, sass, and zero sugarcoating
🔥 Love. Support. Community. Healing.
And you — the mom reading this — are a part of it.
Because if my story resonated, it means you’re in your own season of “I lost myself.”
And if you take NOTHING else from this blog, take this:
You are allowed to rise again.
Even slowly.
Even imperfectly.
Even with an inhaler in hand and rage in your chest.
If You’re Ready to Take Your First Step, Here’s Where to Start
💚 Get my FREE Autism Mom’s Guide to the IEP Process
If school is stressing you out, this guide will give you clarity, scripts, and confidence.
–Autism Moms Guide To The IEP Process
🌿 Curious about holistic support for sleep, anger, behavior, or anxiety?
Here’s the jelly that calmed my son, saved my own nervous system, and literally changed our home dynamic.
–Holistic Product Match
🌙 Need emotional regulation and healing tools? Try the 7-day app trial.
This is for the moms who feel like they’re drowning. A one-stop app with everything to help you come back.
–Personal Growth
You don’t need to fix everything today.
You just need one next step.
And if you forget?
Come back here.
Re-read this.
Borrow my strength until you feel your own.
Because you’re not done, mama.
You’re rising.
And I’m rising with you. 💚🔥
