Cal Louise Phoenix | YWCA Women of Excellence Honoree
What inspires you to get up and do the work?
It depends on the role. As an addictions counselor, i’m most inspired by my mother, a licensed clinical social who served this community for decades and has overcome tremendous personal adversity. She is my best mentor, role model, and ethical compass. As an author, i’m compelled by universal truths and art as a human necessity. My work is born of my experiences with Jewishness, womanhood, addiction, exploitation, etc. As a stage manager for Foxy by Proxy, i’m driven to promote collectivity through collaboration with a diverse group of men, women, and non-binary folk who use their talents to create performances that, once enacted, become greater than themselves via the magic of witness. As an online administrator, i saw the need for a secure space for women and female-bodied persons to process abuse safely and to seek advice and support—and created this space myself.
What have you learned about yourself through the challenges you have overcome?
Above all, i have learned the incredible importance of gratitude.
How do you take care of yourself?
For all helping professionals, self-care is an absolute necessity. To be devoted to my clients, colleagues, friends, and family, i must first be devoted to myself. I’ve learned to accept and respect my limitations; keep healthy boundaries; respond to stress and conflict proactively; and ask for help when i need it. I also recognize that i’m more than my work. To that end, i regularly engage my hobbies and interests, such as sewing, jewelry making, hiking, reading, cooking, listening to podcasts, visiting museums, watching documentaries, and attending Shabbat worship services. These activities nourish me—mind, body, and spirit.
What is the best advice you've ever been given? Or what advice do you have for others?
The best advice i’ve received was provided by my former counselor, Megan Luttrell, who told me that no matter what happens on any given day, as long as i lay down to sleep with a sober mind and body, i can overcome it. Eight years later and despite incredible trauma and hardship, i have lived by this advice, and she was right.
