“The person that I am now? I feel whole,” says Lindsay Lefebvre, graduate of the Wellness Counselling Diploma program. However, reaching that sense of wholeness and fulfillment took time, and the change wasn’t something she was expecting when she first enrolled.
Before Rhodes Wellness College, Lindsay had worked extensively as a volunteer. She had become a “big sister” through Big Brothers Big Sisters of Canada, had worked with Go Girls visiting schools and talking to groups about everything from nutrition to self-esteem, and had volunteered at Operation Come Home, a drop in centre for street youth. For Lindsay, each of these experiences was a chance to help others. “I just wanted to give back,” she says.
It was a friend who recommended that Lindsay consider becoming a life coach/counsellor. Her leadership skills seemed to make her an excellent fit for this career, which led her to Rhodes Wellness College. Little did she know just how much of an impact her training would have.
“It changed my life in every way,” she reminisces today. “I had no idea what I was signing up for, but it was exactly what I needed and I wish that everybody could go through it.” To find out just how Lindsay’s life was transformed by her eye-opening experience at Rhodes Wellness College, keep reading.
Opting for the Wellness Counselling Diploma Program During a Period of Difficulty
When Lindsay initially enrolled at Rhodes Wellness College, she chose to complete the Life Coach Diploma program. As a natural leader, she had always been good at inspiring others, and so becoming a life coach seemed like the perfect fit for her skills and interests. However, Lindsay soon made some important discoveries about her own strengths and challenges.
“I was doing a lot of isolating because I held independence in such high regard, and during the coaching program I really realized how much I wanted connection with people,” she remembers. Towards the end of the two-semester program, Lindsay began to experience a number of difficulties outside of school, which became an eye-opener for the most fundamental changes she would undergo. “I was going through a lot of struggles,” she explains, “I didn’t realize it at the time, I was just trying to get through everything, but I was actually in a really deep depression.”
“I felt really alone and I was questioning a lot of things,” Lindsay reflects.
It was then, when nearing the end of her last semester, that Lindsay knew she had to make a profound change. “I was so high functioning that no one knew what was going on for me,” she remembers, “and I knew that I can’t come this far and just leave and not address this.”
“I realized I have to stand up for myself. I have to be the one to say: “I need help,”” Lindsay recalls. That’s when she decided to pursue the Wellness Counselling Diploma, which seemed ideal for helping her address these aspects.
Overcoming Challenges and Learning the Value of Vulnerability
However, it wasn’t all smooth sailing from there. “On the second day I was ready to quit and leave and go back home because it was the most challenging thing I have ever done in my whole life,” says Lindsay. “Taking responsibility for my life was something that was hard to do. We as humans are probably happy to own the good things about ourselves, but it’s really hard to also take ownership of the things that we don’t love and the things that don’t make us better.” Facing the negative things about herself was one of the biggest challenges she underwent, but it was also one that offered incredible rewards.
Lindsay soon realized that fear was running her life. “I didn’t realize how hard I was working to keep myself safe from something that might not have even been a threat,” Lindsay recalls. She explains that one of the biggest challenges she faced was that she was afraid to embrace her vulnerability, especially as someone who is a natural leader. “I felt like those things contradicted each other, and it turns out that’s not the case.”
Now Lindsay sees vulnerability as a strength, and facilitating this connection in groups is the most fulfilling aspect of her work. “Often people walk through life, I know I did, thinking that no one has the same experiences, so it’s really cool to watch people connect through their ideas or their stories.”
The Best Advice Going Forward Is That Change Takes Hard Work
If Lindsay were to give one piece of advice to her clients today, it would be for them to understand the amount of power they have within themselves to instigate change.
The same principle applies to her advice to anyone considering enrolling in wellness counselling training at Rhodes Wellness College: “If you want the best chance of being effective in other people’s lives then the Wellness Counselling Diploma Program is the most effective way to do that as long as you’re willing to do the work,” she states. “It takes a full mind-body-spirit immersion into this program to come out the best possible version of yourself and be able to offer the most to your clients in the future.”
Diving in headfirst and deciding to put everything in it for herself really helped Lindsay become the changed person she is today. She is more excited than ever to do the work she is passionate about and give back all that she has learned.
Do you want to undergo a life-changing experience and become a wellness counsellor?
Explore the program offered by Rhodes Wellness College!
Works Cited
Suchomel, K. (Interviewer) and Lefebvre, Lindsay. (Interviewee). (2018). February 5 Phone Interview [Interview transcript].
