MY STORY: BECOMING RESILIENT
I hear sirens. I see lights flashing and smoke in the sky. When I turn on my street, I see my house engulfed in flames. My four children are trapped and I watch in horror as the house burns with them inside.
The fire, set by my ex-partner, the father of my three youngest children. His attorneys gutted what was left of my life in their efforts to save him from the death penalty. I was distraught and unable to work. I had to quit my job. I was working for the State of Illinois at the time, and they were trying to force me to return to work against my doctor's orders.
At my weakest point I was curled up on my couch, fighting to suppress the flashbacks which brought pain, tears and nausea. My life was a cold, lonesome valley of wretchedness, pain, and hopelessness.
Ultimately, I made the decision to fight for my life. I decided that I was going to be the mother who demands justice for her murdered children. I decided that I was going to be a survivor, and a change maker.
I begin to speak out for domestic violence and stalking laws. I reach out to state and national senators and representatives, advocating for laws to protect women like me, a mother and a victim whose four young children were murdered, and who was being attacked by the third largest law firm in the US.
I opened up about my story on the Oprah Winfrey Show. I created a stalking safety training course, which I taught on a Diane Sawyer documentary. I became an author, and developed my own social service business.
People wonder how I survived I often hear, “Linda, I don’t know how you kept going and survived your children’s deaths.’” People say they wouldn’t be able to do it, to stay strong and to go on.
I survived tragic loss by building a new normal. I realized that I could share my experiences and philosophies for surviving and coping with others. I now understand that I can use the lessons I've learned in life to help others survive the downs of their life, whether it be surviving trauma, losing a loved one, going through a divorce, ect. I empower people to strive towards their goals, and live a life focusing on love and happiness.
You don’t have to sink into a pit of darkness. You are not alone. You can develop your surviving and coping skills, and I can help guide you in building your staircase to the light.
Discover the meaning of life after surviving disaster, violence, or the death of a loved one!