Becoming Fully Me

Angela Whited Photography, Leone Lash Makeup

Mine is a story of Freedom.

I have lived many lives. I was once a high-achieving high school star. Then I was an abused and addicted high school drop out. Then, I climbed my way out and became the woman I had always envisioned: a powerful attorney. But when my power could not outmatch the corruption I confronted, I was stripped of my identity and forced to redefine myself yet again. So, I went within myself to discover who I truly am: an artist, author, and entrepreneur. I have created a life of Freedom. This is how I got here…

My life began in Kingston, Jamaica where I was born to a Mother who was from Orange Walk, Belize and a Father born in Cambridge, England, raised mostly in Toronto, Canada. They met in Jamaica when his cousin married my mother’s brother. My mother was 16 and he was 19. I believe he loved her instantly.

She was beautiful, sharp-tongued, and rebellious. He was kind, nerdy, and charismatic in a more approachable way. She found him to be a bit boring but he rode a motorcycle so he was able to keep my mom’s attention. For the time being.

They split when my mom got restless at the age of 19. She ran off to Mexico to explore another romance. He, brokenhearted I’m sure, headed to the States to get his first Master’s Degree.

They were reunited when - conveniently - he ended up in Florida for his Ph.D. during the time that my mom was there living with one of her 8 sisters. He called my mom at her sister’s house and asked to see her. She was 26, single, and no longer wanted to mingle.

So, recognizing his opportunity, he dropped his Ph.D. program, moved her back to Jamaica, and married her.

Within the year, I was born to the happy lovebirds. My father began his career as an actuary and my mom settled into her new life as a wife and mother. Shortly thereafter, my father accepted a position at the headquarters of a large insurance company in Columbus, Ohio. So, off we went to establish our life as a family in the United States.

I believe that one of the reasons I was able to survive everything that came next is because during my introduction to life I was in a safe, loving, stable place. This spiritual memory, I believe, has been my internal anchor in times of turmoil. And times of turmoil certainly came.

I went from being an All-American Jamaican girl, excelling at everything I did, to a high school drop out. My parents failed to support or protect me. I thus experienced many of the traumas that vulnerable women experience: domestic violence; housing instability; addiction.

Until one day, I looked myself in the mirror and said “You will never feel this way again.” With the support of friends and, eventually, my parents, I escaped the abusive relationship and, by the grace of God, found myself in college. I never looked back.

I went on to obtain an Undergraduate and Master’s Degree from Bowling Green State University. I then obtained my Juris Doctor from one of the best schools in the world; Washington University in St. Louis. I immediately landed a job as a powerful prosecutor at the Denver District Attorney’s Office in Colorado and served in that role for 4 years.

I had done it. I had become the attorney that I had wanted to be since I was seven years old. I had overcome insurmountable odds and I had created the exact life that I wanted.

Or so I thought.

Working at the DA’s office was great. Until it wasn’t. In January 2022, I was assigned to work with a senior attorney who immediately began harassing me. One day, he ordered me to continue to prosecute a young woman even though he knew I could not prove the case. The government did not have the evidence for the charges and even the police agreed with my decision to dismiss the case. Unfortunately, the senior attorney saw this as an opportunity to punish me for setting professional boundaries with him. So, he ordered me to keep the case open.

I, of course, resisted and reported this order. To my horror, the leadership sided with him, retaliated against me, and I was forced to resign.

This situation mirrored my high school trauma so closely that it immediately triggered all of my unhealed wounds. I spiraled into depression and addiction again but, this time, I knew how to seek out the resources needed to heal. I had lost everything before and was able to create my life out of nothing. I knew I could do it again. And I did.

I immersed myself in healing resources. I tapped into my inner Creatrix to rekindle my love of music and writing. I learned to self-nurture and found balance through the ritual of gardening. I grounded myself in my spirituality, began healing my money wounds, and unlocked my voice. I was forced to discover my Self and it has been an expansive, rewarding, and freeing experience.

In less than one year, I released 3 singles on music streaming platforms worldwide; became an international best-selling author; published a poetry book; successfully launched my own Holistic Victim Rights Law Firm; and have been featured on podcasts, the radio, and in news articles to talk about how I did it.

I will never be compromised again because I have created a life where I am free to express, free to expand, and free to Be Fully Me.

Now, I share all of my gifts and wisdom with you so that you can use what resonates to experience true Freedom and Become Fully You, too!