Rosabel Sanchez

Sometimes, it comes at you in a full wave of emotions that can seem more like a tsunami. At other moments, it can be a slow drip that accumulates over time and gradually submerges you. When life throws everything at you, it can feel as if you’re drowning. In those moments – no matter how we arrived at them – you can quickly feel as if there is no way out, no lifeline to grasp onto, and you slip deeper and deeper into the unknown. This feeling can be overwhelming, to say the least. The good news is that there is a way out. I believe there is hope to rise above the water, experience the fullness of breathing fresh air, and regain the sense that you are not drowning but thriving even amid everything life can throw at you.

In my life, I have also experienced seasons of feeling like I was drowning. Whether those moments were rooted in my childhood – where poverty, learning disabilities, and uncertainty were my normal – or connected to my adult years – scattered with bouts of grief, PTSD, and anxiety – I know that “drowning” feeling all too well. However, I was fortunate to encounter hope through a relationship with God and other relationships I formed and learned from. My life has been heavily impacted by meaningful relationships: educators who inspired me and helped me to see/believe that I could learn, friends who cared and walked with me through the difficult moments, the family who shared an encouraging word to help me get through the moments where I felt like I was going under.

These moments that felt like “healing” propelled me forward and allowed me to see these experiences were more than just hardships I was enduring.  New opportunities opened for me because others walked alongside me and encouraged me. Those paths have led me to my role as a Chicago Public Schools educator, a position I have held for over 23 years. With help from my support system, I have pursued advanced degrees in Reading Theory and Practice, Early Childhood Development, and Counseling. With over fifteen years of experience working with women, marriages, and families as a pastor’s wife, I’ve led countless women’s and marriage ministries, events, and retreats. My journey toward growth, development, and success as an educator, a pastor wife, and a mother has been paved by relationships. I believe in the power of relationships and the change they can produce.

In my deepest, darkest moments – when I felt as if I was going under – there was one common denominator: people were there to offer support, wisdom, and care. I believe that we together can establish the systems and relationship of support, wisdom and care that you desire and that you deserve. Working together in compassion and led by a vision of wholeness in body, soul, and spirit, you can see that there is more to your story than just the drowning feeling. There is hope above the water, there is air to breathe, and there is a brighter future awaiting you on the shore. Let’s walk that path together.