Haunting fears while facing the unknown

About this time last year, I chose to move forward with a big surgery: a preventive double mastectomy. I have the BRCA1 mutation, which puts me at higher risk for breast and ovarian cancer.

I didn't know what to expect.

I didn't know if I'd be able to feel my children's hugs. I didn't know if I'd like my new body. I didn't know if pain would become a constant drain on my joy.

And most importantly, I didn't know if I was making the right call. I was healthy. I didn't have to do this. It was scary.

The thing about uncertainty is that it doesn't just bring up fears about what's actually happening. It can awaken older, deeper fears that have very little to do with the event itself.

I call them haunting fears.

They are the fears that have been quietly living inside us, sometimes for years, waiting for the right trigger to resurface. And when they do, they can shake our sense of power, our optimism, even our faith in ourselves and the future.

Right now, we're living through a cluster of circumstances that are stirring up haunting fears for so many of us.

Will I have a job?
Do I still have value?
Is my career over?

Last summer, I began to use the same approach I've coached countless clients through as they've faced transformations at work and in their careers.

I did the inner discovery work: getting clear on the experience I wanted to have, how I wanted to feel, and who I wanted to be through it.

And I did the outer discovery work: gathering data, interviewing other women, talking to experts, and understanding what was actually true versus what I feared might be true.

Walk by walk in the woods. Conversation by conversation. Question by question.

The fear began to loosen its grip. I kept choosing to empower myself until I wasn't just ready for the surgery. I was excited for it - in every.cell.of.my.body.

Today, nine months out, I'm so grateful. I can squeeze my children tight, and it feels so good. I need to order heavier dumbbells for my home gym. And I feel stronger and more alive than I have in years.  

I love being reminded...

What if the very thing you're afraid of is setting you up for something more wonderful than you can imagine?

We can't know what uncertainty will bring. But we can learn how to meet it without letting our deepest fears decide what happens next.

That's the work I'm most drawn to right now.

Whether through executive coaching, keynotes, or workshops, I help leaders and teams navigate uncertainty, reconnect with their sense of agency, and move forward when the path ahead isn't clear.

If that's something you, your leaders, or your organization are navigating right now, I'd love to talk.

Let's talk →here's a link to my calendar: https://www.stellagrizont.com/book-a-call

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