Shundra’s Journey to TimeOUT
I am LeShundra Green RN, MSN, MHA, but you can call me Shundra. I have been a Geriatric/ Hospice Nurse for over 20 years, and that taught me that change is enviable. And the last five years and COVID defiantly changed my thought process around trading my time for money. By 2015, The Girl Boss Movement was in full effect, and women were finding their places as entrepreneurs, and black women “WE” went in headfirst. Then bam, COVID hit. Now think back to your business at that time and how COVID affected the business. Care Consultants at Home Care is a senior care service that started because I saw the need for quality in-home care at an affordable price. In-home care can be very pricey, but caregiver burnout was becoming widespread, and most seniors did not have access to this luxury. It was not unusual to see a senior couple caring for themselves with little or no help, and I thought why not create something to help this demographic? I researched how to start a program, did the paperwork, and launched it. I was working full-time as a Clinical Manager for a Hospice company, completing a double master’s degree, and got married. But hey, I am “Boss” I got this.
The senior care company was a hands-on project and sometimes I had to step in as the caregiver overnight and head to work in the morning. I did this for almost two years until my husband got a much better position, and I was able to go part-time. Instead of taking the extra time to take care of myself, I started a small meal prep business of course. By 2018 we were busy trying to “get rich or die trying. We invest in conferences and seminars regarding business and wealth. Surrounded ourselves with other small business owners and we started gaining traction within the senior care community.
In 2018 we opened Bell’s Place a personal care home and I was offered a position at the company my husband was working for. This was a great opportunity to work with a well-known hospital in Atlanta and the thoughts of the connections that could be developed overshadowed my physical and emotional well-being. We moved into the high-rise apartment I just had to have, with the view of my dreams and we got pregnant. Everything was going well and then a massive bleed at six weeks, but the baby survived. So, three weeks later I was off bedrest, and everything was going well until around May 2019. I had a devastating miscarriage, and the company sold our division. The sale was not in our best interest and let us just say we left with a nice severance pay. Oh, did I forget to mention I started to get my Nurse Practitioner post-grad certification, yeah tact that on as well.
We took a moment to make some changes, I worked full time on the business, and my husband secured a contract position, but by August I had full-blown post-partum depression, and my husband was not doing well either. Then COVID hit, which affected my husband’s contract position, but the senior care businesses created income, but the money was not the same. Side note, money does not make you happy but damn if it does not help. I started reflecting on everything my husband and I had accomplished over a few short years, but also on what we had lost along the way. I could not work, hell I could barely get out of bed and spent most days on the balcony watching day turn into night. We were in a battle with a virus no one had a clue about, we were trapped inside, and unless you had money life became a little different for many of us.
It came at a cost, but with the income from the business and using the severance money that was left, we took 2020 off. We were blessed to not have to worry about the basics, but luxuries were out. The post-Partum depression was not a surprise, because I had been dealing with depression and anxiety for the last 10 years. Anti-depressants and talk therapy had always worked, but this time was different. I could not shake this feeling of misery. I am not a crier, I carry all my emotions inside, but this time I could not hold them in. I would just sit outside on the balcony with my poodle, and a bottle of wine, and just cry. This went on for about 2 months and something had to give. I dried my tears and started researching depression and anxiety, and methods that are used to treat those conditions. After months of research and different medications, a light just went off in my head. Lady, you got to do something different this time. I started reflecting on my life to try and find something to bring me out of the darkness. I started reading books about religion and God just trying to make sense of it all. I started journaling, meditating, reading, and being true to myself. I put myself on a TimeOUT without realizing it and began to understand that I wanted my time, peace, and freedom way more than money. So, if you are ready to really do the work, put yourself on a TimeOUT and let your tears flow!!!
