What she had to say
“The fortnightly calls were great with ample time to sit with things in between. Just permission to spend time exploring my beliefs and stories and all of the theory behind it all has been wonderful and so insightful."
Meet Natasha Searle
I first stumbled across Benita’s work on Instagram back in 2021 and signed up for one of her online webinars on work life blend. Intrigued by her focus on motherhood, I organised a one-off coaching call and from there, joining Illuminate was a natural next step.
I’m a mum to two children. In the past, I tended to put work first and when I had kids, work and family came before my own needs. For a while, something wasn’t quite sitting right with me, as a mum, and some self-doubt had started to creep in. In looking at many of the areas of my life, I had forgotten I was part of the picture, too and I felt an urge to look within. If I was going to keep doing everything I wanted to do, be who I wanted to be for myself and for my beautiful little family, I knew something needed to change – I just wasn’t sure what that was, but eventually gained the courage to find out.
At first, I was a little nervous about the group coaching aspect of the program, but I didn’t need to be. Benita is so gentle and calm, she just radiates warmth so the Illuminate community was a very comfortable, safe space to be in. I also learnt a lot from the other women and their experiences of motherhood and loved the connection. Benita has a knack for explaining concepts in a very practical and straightforward way and demonstrates how to apply them to your everyday life.
As mothers, we are all familiar with the mental load. Through this journey, and the lessons in Illuminate, this load has lightened. I was introduced to a number of practices including journaling, gratitude, exploring my beliefs and stories as well as a goal setting process that was taught in a way I’ve not explored before plus so much more. Using the tools Benita shared, I’ve taken action and have more confidence in setting boundaries to protect myself and my time. I’ve also seen a shift in how I respond to situations that arise.
Illuminate gave me space to learn, reflect and sit with things I’d never allowed myself to acknowledge before. I realised my thoughts and feelings are valid. I had rarely given myself permission to feel, and doing so during this journey has shone the light on many valuable, personal insights. It’s a work in progress, I’m out of my comfort zone much of the time but that’s the growth.
Having lifetime access to the content is amazing, and the opportunity to stay engaged through the Glow Membership is fabulous. It’s been a special journey and I highly recommend the Illuminate coaching program to any mother who is craving something for herself that will ultimately give back positively to herself and to the precious people around her.
“There’s clearly been a lot of thought gone into the design of the program itself as well as the content. It’s been put together in a particular sequence that builds on itself and lays out all of the concepts in a really clear and straightforward way with plenty of time to sit with things between the fortnightly calls, it’s truly all encompassing."
Her Case Study
Natasha’s journey to joining Illuminate began back in mid 2020 when she signed up for one of our free online sessions. After watching the replay, she was curious to find out more and receive some support in motherhood.
A full life and a heavy workload, Natasha had some initial doubts about how she was going to juggle being a great mum while still excelling at her work.
In the mix of looking after everyone else, she’d forgotten to consider her own needs. She knew if she were to continue doing all the things she wanted to do – and do them well – she’d have to take some time out to reconnect to herself.
The content and the space between the fortnightly calls gave Natasha time to explore and sit with her feelings, something she had never truly given herself permission to do before.
Through the program, Natasha was introduced to some practices that were new to her like meditation and journaling, as well as some of the more familiar concepts like SMART goal setting, all of which are designed to manage and reduce mental load.
Allowing herself the time and space to feel her feelings provided Natasha with many personal insights and the confidence to to finally put firmer boundaries in place.
Working through her fears and the patterns of over-thinking she’d fallen into helped Natasha start to let go of the perfectionism and high standards that were blocking her from taking action in her life.
With lifetime access to the content, and the opportunity to stay engaged through the Glow Membership, Natasha’s journey back to herself has been wonderful to watch.