Spotlight
Meet Heidi Bratt, Advocate, Tireless Law Changer for those who suffer from Alopecia Areata, and friend
I had the distinct pleasure of meeting Heidi at a health fair in Boston several years ago. Heidi is the type of person that once you meet her, you NEVER forget her. This is a women that has resilience, tenacity, and passionate about helping individuals, such as herself that suffer with an emotional and physical condition named Alopecia Aerata.
Alopecia areata is a disease that affects the hair follicles, which are part of the skin from which hairs grow. In most cases, hair falls out in small, round patches about the size of a quarter. Many people with the disease get only a few bare patches. Some people may lose more hair. Rarely, the disease causes total loss of hair on the head or complete loss of hair on the head, face, and body.
Each year The North Shore 100 showcases leaders in the community identified by people across Cape Ann and Essex County, MA, where Heidi was featured because of advocating for insurance companies to pay for wigs for people with alopecia aerata.
It doesn’t stop there, Heidi Bratt recently received an award and certificate of recognition for her victory of getting 3 major health insurance companies to pay for hair prosthesis – wigs for people that have Alopecia Areata.
Heidi is also a compassionate NAAF pen pal conversing with NAAF members that live all over the world in order to provide help or support in dealing with this disease and just to talk and share information.
Below are links to several articles written about Heidi. Just click on the icons to read.
Connect With Heidi. Share her story. I thank Heidi as I admire greatly! 
Spotlight
Meet Jennifer Kauffman, Results Coach, Speaker, Seminar Leader, Author and Chief Results Officer, The Results Group
When Jennifer Kauffman takes her place at the center of the 90-Day planning session that she runs for her clients and prospective clients, the crisp suit and sharp focus of ideas, the confident delivery of message and instructions without notes, and the matter-of-fact push to move participants out of their comfort zones, give the impression that she was born leading people to find their own success, their own greatness.
“Take a flip chart page and list your five top accomplishments last quarter, and then list your two or three top challenges,” she instructs the dozen or so participants, some private clients and others who work in Jennifer’s group coaching sessions every other week. All get busy, and to the one or two who claim that they “didn’t make any” of their quarterly goals that they had set at the previous 90-Day planning session, Jennifer easily guides them to a success, an accomplishment, that they had not thought to chronicle as such. “Remember when you …?” she asks one; then “what about …?” she asks another. It seems that she remembers and defines the successes of her people better than they do.
That authoritative exterior, however, belies a wise and deeply sincere soul who has journeyed to this point in her career through disturbing experiences, any one of which could have justifiably derailed her own success. As a seven-year-old, Jennifer lost her dad to divorce, and soon after she witnessed her mother being attacked by a man in their home. To the little girl’s credit, her bravery in confronting the situation directly forced the man to leave – but he took with him her sense of safety in her own home and her trust that parents are invincible.
Ten-year-old Jennifer experienced still more isolation when her Dad announced that his new wife would soon deliver a baby. The baby came into the world with such a myriad of life-threatening medical issues that hospital staff declared that he would not make it through the night. Although the tiny little boy proved everyone wrong (and continues to do so today), his needs usurped all the fathering that Jen’s dad had in him, and again, the ache of abandonment filled her heart.
While trying to adjust to a new extended family, one that included the woman she blamed for taking away her father, Jennifer fell in love instantly with baby Brian. Her father and his wife closely guarded the perpetually ill infant from all outsiders — including Jennifer among the outsiders – and although understandable from an adult’s perspective, they thwarted Jennifer’s efforts at closeness. Anger welled up. She would have to work hard for more than two decades to keep it from spilling out.
A few years later, Jennifer’s world shook yet again when an acquaintance of a family friend lured her away from a picnic with a promise of a boat ride with other kids, and then sexually molested her while two other adult women, whom she did not know, witnessed and did nothing to stop what was happening. Reeling with the shock and embarrassment that any eleven-year-old would have endured from it, she promised her silence about the matter when he assaulted her again before returning her to the picnic area, and threatened to harm her family if she told.
So Jennifer, as most victims of sexual assault do, pushed the experience deep into her secluded subconscious, walling it off especially from those closest to her for the protection of them all. She withdrew even further from her father and his new family, cutting off her communication with them completely, as he had now moved them a thousand miles away to Florida.
Her passion and love for life lost, Jennifer says of that time that her grades started to slip and she lost interest in sports, which from the age of five constituted her “whole life” and at which she accordingly excelled.
Jennifer filled the years following high school graduation with all manner of overachievement. She worked her way through college — an Associate’s degree in Accounting at Quincy College, a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of Massachusetts, a Certification in Employee and Retirement Benefits from Bentley, and eventually a Master of Science Administration in Innovation and Technology from Boston University – while fast-tracking on the corporate ladder to a Vice Presidency at one of the area’s most well known investment firms.
Death and disability stalked her, however, and at age 26 a head-first fall to the ice in a skating rink caused a severe, inward swelling of her brain. It produced stroke-like symptoms, and Jennifer could neither focus nor walk, and the heavy-duty pain and anti-inflammatory medications that her doctors prescribed provided her with little relief. For three months she had to avoid television, ordinary noise, talking — she stayed quiet just to get through the day and the pain. The deep depression, migraine headaches, unspecified terror, and anxiety/panic disorder that followed would have swallowed her whole except for her “amazing family,” she now says. “My mom was my rock. I trusted her completely, even when I couldn’t trust myself. She gave me courage, confidence and a kick in the butt to do whatever I had to do to get through this and heal.”
Making a commitment to get off the pain and anti-depression medications that doctors had already declared she would depend on for the rest of her life, Jennifer created a strong mindset to find whatever programs, whatever resources she needed, to chase away the constant nightmares and debilitating fears. It took a total of three years and a lot of help from her mother and others, but Jennifer got back to health and back to corporate success. She had even found the strength to disclose the sexual abuse to her mother and sister, and by so doing, began her journey to trust again.
Just shy of 30 when the 9/11 attacks rocked all of America’s people to their cores, Jennifer determined that the time had come to put aside her anger and disappointment and reconnect with her father and his Florida family. She called him. Less than three weeks later, her dad and his family stunned her at her 30th surprise birthday celebration when they showed up at the invitation of her mother and sister, Heather.
Their trip to celebrate her milestone bore all the earmarks of a wonderful reunion, a new, mature acceptance and understanding of what caused the separation and isolation, and she made her own trip to their home to celebrate the Holidays two and a half months later. Three days after Christmas, her dad died on fishing outing, an accident that still haunts Jennifer for its unlikelihood, for its brutality that would leave the family forever wondering what caused him to slip overboard apparently unconscious, vulnerable to the boat’s propeller, which inflicted severe head trauma when it struck him during the rescue attempt.
Today she says of that tragedy-filled reunion, “At least I got three months.”
With an acquisition looming in the investment firm where she had worked for a decade, she proactively negotiated a separation and wandered through several employment opportunities before her search for what she “was really meant to do in life” occurred to her. After six weeks of due diligence, she identified a business coaching franchise opportunity that felt like coming home.
Jennifer threw herself into the endeavor, and began leading small business owners to new levels of success and streamlined operation through a proven methodology. Never one to be uni-dimensional, Jennifer started reading inspirational and spirituality-infused books, written by the likes of Norman Vincent Peale, Napoleon Hill, Jack Canfield, Tony Robbins, Wayne Dyer and Brian Tracy. She sought out and participated in a number of workshops and educational programs that expanded her spiritual nature and opened new ways for her to let go of past behaviors, and opened her outlook to see the power and possibility in intentionality and living an extraordinary life.
Soon the notion of writing a book — a number of books, actually – tugged at her consciousness. The franchise rules would not allow her to expand and grow professionally the way that her high energy, and new insight began to lead her, so in 2010 she separated from them amicably and turned her business, as she coaches others to do, to its true compass to maximize its potential.
Her new business, thoughtfully named The Results Group for the promise that it shows its clients, centers on facing hard truths and doing the hard work it takes to succeed. As she leads the 90-Day Planning session, Jennifer challenges the participants: “What really lights you up?” she asks. With the deftness of [a seasoned professional], she guides often reluctant clients out the shadows of their preconceived notions of what their success would look like, and into the realm of vision, where success becomes deeply personal and frequently unconventional for them.
Guest speaking engagements have started to fill her schedule. With a quiet confidence she reaches for a new dream, to turn the sum of her life’s challenges into inspiration, prosperity and healing for those willing to let go of their quest for the ordinary, and to find their greatness and an extraordinary life.
For more information, contact Jennifer Kauffman, Chief Results Officer, The Results Group , at 781-871-0744
Email Jennifer@jenniferkauffman.com, or visit www.jenniferkauffman.com.
Spotlight
Meet Laura Bonetzky-Joseph, Managing Director and Holistic Practitioner at MedSpa New England, LLC located in Hingham, Ma.
Laura believes that no matter what you are seeking, balance is key – mind, body or spirit. If any of those three areas are out of balance, your whole system will be out of balance. She has found this to be true in all aspects of the services provided at MedSpa New England. She strives to provide the very best services, classes, workshops, & events. Laura also customizes services to meet her client’s individual needs.
Fortunately, Laura was raised in a medical family where she learned hands on about various alternative holistic therapies & general health for the past 20 years. Laura’s father has been a holistic osteopathic physician and surgeon with a focus on general health, wellness & dermatology for over 30+ years servicing the south shore, who is currently the medical director overseeing MedSpa New England, LLC.
Laura’s mother is a retired registered nurse and a nurse administrator with 20+ yrs experience. All of Laura’s life has been engulfed in the field of health & wellness. She assisted in the office management of her father’s medical practice since the age of 18 and over the coarse of the past 20 years, she has learned about general health care, alternative holistic therapies, dermatology, challenges with the heath care system, assisting in office procedures, phlebotomy, EKG, administration, and more.
Laura is very compassionate and passionate about what she does. She is always studying and looking for ways to improve and better serve her clients, and works on implementing services that she or someone close to her has personally had a positive experience. Laura has studied under Rita Berkowitz, LeRoy Malouf, Rachelle Croteau, Mary D’Alba and Britain’s own Brenda Lawrence and is always taking holistic, spiritual, & medical courses to better serve her clients. She is a certified medical assistant and an Usui Reiki Master Teacher & Practitioner and a facilitator for various workshops, groups, events & classes such as Meditation, Stress Reduction, Reiki, and Food Sensitivities. Laura is also certified in PPx Therapies, and practices alternative therapies to modern medicine working in conjunction with other medical professionals. Laura’s goal is to attain her Nurse Practitioner’s License within the next couple years. Testimonials.
She’s the moderator for various online health & wellness groups including Myspace & LinkedIn & volunteers her time helping those healing from abuse.
Laura’s mission is to find the best of both worlds in the traditional and holistic world. Having overcome health challenges herself as well as her family, Laura implements she has learned, studied, experienced and found to help her own family’s health and wellness. Her goal is to have a positive impact in this world, make a difference in people’s lives and find simple preventative cures for complex problems. Her desire to help others stems from her daughter born with a variety of health challenges including a food sensitivity to almost everything.
Fortunately, it was with Laura’s training and mother’s instinct that pushed her forward and with help of family in the medical field, she discovered her daughter had a serious internal birth defect that required urgent surgery at the age of 3 months. The experience changed her family’s lives forever and led Laura to become interested in food sensitivities and what she calls “an under-diagnosed and unrecognized field heading towards epidemic levels due to all the chemically and genetically modified foods, over-processing, over-vaccinating, and the overuse of anti-bacterial soaps.” (New England Business Bulletin; Pamela Berard; Nov 2010)
She has volunteered her time to Old Colony Hospice and has served as a past Fall Gala Committee Member in 2006-2007 raising nearly $10,000. She is also a past member of ADD-In, Local Chapter support group for ADD/ADHD & StepUp4Kids, support group for Bipolar, ADD/ADHD, Asbergers, & Autism.
Laura was recognized in 2009 & 2010 as one of the top professionals under the age of 40 by New England Business Bulletin. She was one of the featured recipients in the article “Sixteen honorees were selected for innovation, leadership, and community service;” by Pamela Berard, a New England Business Bulletin correspondent on November 24, 2010. She was also the 2008, 2009, 2010 recipient for the Healthy Living Award given by Healthy Living Magazine for her contributions to the health and wellness communities.
Laura has published articles on topics such as Vitamin D, Stress, and Meditation on sites such as SelfGrowth.com and Take5.com. You may view a sampling of her work on her website.
For more information on Laura or MedSpa New England, LLC, go to her website or call 781-422-2294.
Spotlight
Meet Anne Barry Jolles, Published Author, Life and Resiliency Coach
“Get your affairs in order.”
I don’t think there are many more sobering or fear producing words to hear from a cardiologist right before your surgery. Yet, these are the words delivered to my husband and myself 2 days before his very dangerous surgery to remove a tumor.
If you are like me, you can’t stand the tension during horror and thriller movies. I can only enjoy the movie when I know how it ends. So, I am going to tell you the end of the story so you can listen to the rest. My husband survived the surgery and remains cancer free 2 years later. Needless to say, after hearing that dire warning, we spent the next day getting our affairs in order, saying good bye and grieving.
Now 2 years later there are 2 ways to look back on that moment:
One way is to relive the horror and anxiety, and be pushed over the edge with emotion, and fear of the “what ifs” in our future.
OR
The other way is to be grateful for that wake up call that reminds us:
• of how precious now is.
• that our days and vitality are finite.
• that on most days and most moments we have more than enough.
• that in each moment we choose to either focus on the fear and “what if’s”.
And we can choose to savor parts of each day and salvage the best of it by choosing to focus, and managing our thoughts and emotions…when possible.
That is the gift that I choose to bring the world. If you are fortunate enough to be alive, then you have stress and challenges. I help people, in all different life and work situations, to be more resilient and resourceful so they can be more successful. It is possible to increase your positivity, productivity and ultimately success by consciously being aware of and choosing your mindset, perspectives and attitudes. In other words, “bring the best you to what you do.”
So, the big question is, how can you bring an urgency to each day to live to the fullest without crossing the anxiety line into fear and paralysis? You don’t have to hear those words that my husband and I heard to live each day as if it were your last…because, of course, one day you will be right.
This is what I help people to do…
Wake up in this moment so you can move towards the bigger possibilities in your life. Now matters!
During an earlier challenging time in my family’s life, I created a simple process to help with doing just this. I have shared it with thousands and I hear often from people who use, enjoy and benefit from it. You can read more about it at www.RiseAndShineAnytime.com
Anne grew up in a small Irish Catholic family, the 5th out of 6 children, in Quincy, MA. She was fortunate to grow up by the beach, the woods and the city. As a result, she loves the outdoors and discovery. Her adventures include jumping off the “Jaws” bridge {“The shark’s in the pond!”}, horseback riding through glacial fields with her family, and kayaking. She is an avid in- line skater and keeps her ‘blades in her car trunk, just in case… It has taken Anne 25 years to make the best chicken soup on the planet, and endless ballroom dance lessons to finally stop trying to lead and actually enjoy following.
With 10 years in the coaching industry, Anne supports a mix of personal and business clients committed to increasing vitality, life satisfaction and creating success at work and home. She brings her passion to her work as a certified life coach by developing and sharing a wide spectrum of knowledge and tools to bring one’s best into life and work.
“I personally own and love Anne’s book”, boasts Allison of allisonnuovo.com “Rise and Shine Anytime” Simple Questions to Wake Up Your Life
Want To Connect With Anne?
Phone: 781-878-8589
Email: abjcoach@comcast.net
WEB: www.AnneJolles.com
Anne’s latest book. www.RiseAndShineAnytime.com
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/annebarryjolles
“Find your inner strength and power to move things you never thought possible!”
Spotlight
Meet Donna Erickson, A Flair For Writing
Donna J. Erickson has owned A Flair For Writing (www.aflairforwriting.com) since 1989 and has more than two decades of experience in writing, editing, and publishing. After a friend encouraged her to “do something with her writing,” she began freelancing in 1986. Since then she has worked as a feature writer, advertising copywriter, resume writer, an editor of seven published books, and has freelanced for local, national, and international publications. She is the author of No-Hassle Publishing: An Author’s Guide to Today’s Changing Industry. Erickson worked as Senior Editor/Copartner for a small press and then expanded her company by adding a publishing division, which offers a full array of quality services for self-publishing authors. Erickson conducts seminars and teleseminars entitled “How to Publish Like a Pro” and “Total Publishing 101: What You Need to Know About Writing, Publishing, and Marketing Your Book.”
The road leading to her career has not been an easy one for Erickson. Because of a difficult home life while growing up in Boston, she left her family at age 16 and moved in with a friend’s family in Brockton to finish high school. During that period she met her future husband, Jeff, and was married at age 20. She later endured years of grueling fertility treatments to conceive her son, Ryan, born in 1984. During his childhood, Ryan was diagnosed with a mood disorder, which has resulted in numerous hospitalizations. “They say I’m a survivor,” says Erickson, “and I agree.”
Erickson was listed in the Marquis Who’s Who in America, 2009, 2010; Who’s Who in the World, 2009, 2010; has received an Award for Excellence from Riverside Publishing, and an Over the Top Blog Award from Creative Chronicles. Articles about her company have been featured in The Patriot Ledger, The Enterprise, and Mariner Newspapers. She has been a radio guest on the nationally syndicated program, Dresser After Dark, blogtalkradio’s Conversations Live!, and on WATD-FM and WMSX-AM. Erickson’s goal is to continue growing her company as a virtual writing, editing, and publishing business.
Find Out more about Donna
Linked In http://www.linkedin.com/in/donnaerickson123
Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/aflair4writing
Spotlight
Meet Nikki Walsh, President of PK Walsh
For over 28 years, PK Walsh has remained the only hair restoration and enhancement service in the Boston Massachusetts area to cater exclusively to women experiencing hair loss and thinning hair. This last month PK Walsh won the prestigious Stevie Award for Best Overall Company in the Stevie Awards for Women in Business. “We are focused exclusively on women’s hair loss and hair restoration needs. Providing a safe, private, and caring environment is important to us.”says Nikki.
The company was founded by Nikki’s mother, Kathy Walsh. Mother and daughter are among 30 million to 40 million women in the United States with some form of hair loss, which often carries a stigma. Today, Nikki manages the day-to-day affairs of the family business and strives to continue the legacy her mother started. As New England’s leading hair replacement and restoration salon, Nikki and her mom, Kathy have helped thousands of women with experiencing a renewed confidence. Nikki set the standard with expert stylists, well established referring partners, and comfortable, and private offices.
Nikki understands the emotional stress of losing your hair and the impact it can have on your mental, physical, and social life. In addition, most would not realize the adversities Nikki has had to overcome. When Nikki was in her sixth month of pregnancy, she was rushed to the hospital in excruciating pain and bleeding profusely. She came close to losing her life and her unborn baby, Steven, now 11. This was the beginning of a very long and turbulent journey for Nikki. Her first stay in the hospital was three months long as she was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis (UC). Fortunately, her medical team was able to stabilize her and preserve her pregnancy. Steven was 10 weeks premature; he was very small but appeared to be healthy. Nikki was bombarded with every medication available to stabilize her and avoid surgery. Sadly nothing worked and Nikki had to endure painful surgery, including a colostomy, and then began navigating a whole new world of medical challenges. Today, Nikki is feeling better than she has in years. Steven is a charming, dynamic boy who has created a shampoo line to help raise money for Crohn’s and Colitis disease. Nikki continues to divide her time between business, family, and charity work. Read more about Nikki on her blog listed below.
Read about Steven http://blog.pkwalsh.com/stevens-page/
Find Out More About Nikki
Website http://www.pkwalsh.com/
Follow Nikki On Facebook http://www.facebook.com/pages/Needham-MA/PK-Walsh/22666903301
Twitter http://twitter.com/#!/pkwalsh4women
You Tube http://www.youtube.com/pkwalsh4women
There are so many incredible women who contribute to the betterment of the world. Each month, we will feature an inspirational diva, just like you. If you are interested in sharing your story, please email us at allison@allisonnuovo.com
