OWN YOUR BRAND SHOW with Victoria Odekomaya

When Life Breaks You, Choose to Rise: The Story of LaVreen Hall | Epi 74

• Victoria Odekomaya | LiMStudios Network • Episode 74

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This episode dives into the powerful story of LaVreen Hall — a mental health coach, author, and retreat leader whose life changed after her heart stopped for eleven seconds. Through chronic illness, a devastating house fire, and the loss of her husband during COVID, LaVreen rebuilt her life around faith, healing, and community. She shares how journaling became her lifeline, how she designed healing retreats that begin with celebration, and how monthly follow-up circles keep transformation going long after the moment passes.

For founders, creators, and caregivers, this conversation is a masterclass in sustainable self-care and leadership. We unpack the myth of “pushing through,” redefine rest as a strategic advantage, and explore how therapy, coaching, and boundaries protect your peace before burnout hits. LaVreen's FIT program, self-care course, and retreats offer a roadmap to move from survival to whole-person leadership. It’s raw, real, and packed with hope for anyone ready to start healing and leading differently.

Connect with LaVreen for updates, resources, and more!
🌐 www.lavreen.org
📧 justwords@lavreen.org
📞 (317) 697-6663

Hit play, share this episode with someone who needs a dose of hope, and let’s protect our peace together. 💛

ABOUT

Victoria Odekomaya is a Nigerian American entrepreneur, speaker, and content marketing strategist on a mission to help business owners grow their business, brand, and legacy through the power of storytelling and strategic content marketing.

She’s the founder of LiMStudios, a full-service creative agency and state-of-the-art content studio in Indianapolis where strategy and storytelling come together through high-quality content production and marketing implementation. She’s also the creator of Boss Ladies Magazine and host of The Own Your Brand Show, a video podcast to help business owners grow their business, brand, and legacy through strategic content marketing and authentic conversations about the entrepreneurial journey.

Each week, Victoria breaks down practical content marketing strategies in her solo “Own Your Brand” episodes and sits down with entrepreneurs in her Behind the Brand series to uncover the stories, struggles, and systems behind their success. Because when we get real about the wins AND the struggles, we realize we're not alone and that's when real transformation happens.

Follow her journey through LiMStudios, Boss Ladies Magazine, and The Own Your Brand Show and join the movement to amplify voices, build legacy, and make impact.

📩 For sponsorship or business inquiries:
mtr.bio/limstudios | hello@thelimstudios.com | Text 260-777-7211

LaVreen Hall:

You literally died and came back to life. We came back and there were fire trucks everywhere and then I realized our house was on fire. My husband died during COVID. It's the first time that so many people had to grieve, but they had to grieve alone. We don't know how to take care of ourselves. One thing is choose to live. We have to choose life.

Victoria Odekomaya:

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Own Your Brand Show. I'm your girl Victoria Odekomaya, and on this special Behind the Brand series, I have a wonderful lady, LaVreen Hall, with me, and she's going to be sharing a lot about our struggles and how she's turning that into empowering not only herself but a lot of business owners out there. I think that you're going to be very, very inspired because when it comes to people going through challenges, let me tell you, this woman has gone through it. She's died and come back again. And if she can do that, I think that gives us the hope that we can all do it too. So without much ado, let's get into it.

LaVreen Hall:

I'm doing good. Thank you so much.

Victoria Odekomaya:

Oh my goodness. You are alive and well and I'm alive and well, yes. I'm breathing. So we'll get into that because I just mentioned how you literally died and came back to life. But for people that don't know who you are, can you just give them a you know a brief introduction?

LaVreen Hall:

Oh sure. Um I'm LaVreen Hall. I'm the owner of Just Words, and I'm the founder of Fit. And I do mental health coaching, uh, workshops, retreats. I'm an author. I have a new book coming out on healing. And that's pretty much what I do. Um who I am as a person, would you like to know? Yeah, absolutely. Um so basically I was born and raised in Indianapolis, Indiana. I'm a Hoosier. Um and I had a challenging childhood, you know, uh grew up around a lot of people in poverty, which gave me a certain perspective on that. Um and then I went into just kind of being a peacemaker and helping people. Uh I suffered from severe migraines was as a child, so it gave me a lot of time to read and to think and to observe and uh kind of decide what I wanted to do. And so from a very young age, I always knew that I wanted to help people. I wanted to help them overcome their situations, overcome the poverty and the effects that it has on them. That's amazing.

Victoria Odekomaya:

And I mean, just words.

LaVreen Hall:

That's the name of your business. My company is just words because words are very important. They have life and death in them. And I find that the words that we speak to ourselves can either help empower us or it can tear us down. And the words that other people speak to us helps to create those belief systems that we operate out of every single day. And then the word of God, you know, his word is the word and it moves through our lives and it is there to guide us and teach us and to help us. And so those three things are just very integral. So when I started thinking about a name of a company, I said, just words, you know, uh, because at the time I was bedridden and I said, you know, um my body is all jacked up, but I can still do something with my mind to help other people. That's amazing. And so that's what I decided on just words.

Victoria Odekomaya:

I love that. It's very simple. Just words. Yeah. And that's it. And words deliver us. I know, and so powerful, powerful, and you're using that to transform lives of people. You know, so I said before that, you know, you've gone through a lot of adversity, maybe more than a lot of people that I know. You know, you you lost your husband, you have you've had your house bunced down to zero, and then you literally died for what, 11 seconds and came back like, oh my God.

LaVreen Hall:

There has been a lot of adversity. Um you know, I think it started when I was a kid with the migraine headaches, and um they were so bad, they lasted months at a time, and the doctors weren't able to uh get those under control. And so I spent a lot of time indoors. Um and then going from that to being, you know, a teenager going off to college, and I got very sick in college, and so I came back home and finished an IUPUI uh up until my junior year, and um had my kids and got married and after 17 years went back to school. But you know, I was a bedroom for 12 years. They could not figure out what was wrong with me. I was having all types of symptoms and uh got declared totally disabled at 27 years old. And that was really uh a challenge being that young and having young kids and not being able to care for them. You know, it made me feel like, oh, you're a bad mother, you know, you're not this, you're not.

Victoria Odekomaya:

And you have a lot of kids, so you have about seven. Yeah, we have six kids. Six, yeah. So, like that I can imagine what that feels like because if you have one, maybe they'll understand, but each kid has different needs too.

LaVreen Hall:

Each kid has different needs, and um came up with some very ingenious ways to spend time with them and to meet their needs individually. Um and so it was just a really interesting time, but uh during that time I got called into ministry. Um, and so my husband who passed away, he got me back into church and um I started participating, and it was just a very interesting journey. And so I went from being bedridden to up and moving around. Um, and in the midst of that, I lost my best friend who had been the one taking care of me. I lost my godmother. And so it was a series of deaths, and then um I was back in school. I went to Christian Theological Seminary to finish my uh degrees and some master programs. But it was interesting because I had to pay my way through. Uh I didn't get the scholarships and things that I applied for, and so I was like, how am I gonna do this? And so I basically paid uh for one class at a time or two classes at a time. But the interesting thing is people would send me money in my mailbox. I got money from pastors overseas that I didn't even know. And so at the last day before the final deadline to pay your bill, I would have all this money from these different sources.

Victoria Odekomaya:

Wow.

LaVreen Hall:

And so it was just a really uh a journey where you learn to depend on the goodness of the Lord and the goodness of people, and they never failed me. What's he doing? Like he's always on time, yes, he's always always on time. And I was assistant pastor at uh Speedway Church, Baptist Church, and it was so interesting how that happened. You know, I went for an interview and I told them, well, you know, I don't know if I'll do this because I have to pay for my school and then it's not paid yet. And they said, We're gonna give you the advance and we're gonna pay your school and you're gonna serve here. Wow, Pastor Ted, I was always grateful to him. And, you know, and being with him as a pastor, God was showing me the soft side of leadership. He was showing me how to lead softly and how to be creative in the way that you present the word and present yourselves. And so I was very developed during that time. Right.

Victoria Odekomaya:

And these are all the things that you teach in your program right now.

LaVreen Hall:

Yes, these are things that I teach in my program, you know. Um, and then going from that, um, you mentioned that my husband died during COVID. That was so interesting because it's the first time that so many people had to grieve, but they had to grieve alone.

Victoria Odekomaya:

Yeah.

LaVreen Hall:

And they didn't have the closure of a funeral or a wait and family coming to support them. Right. And so a lot of this developed uh during that time also. So um one of the things I did was journal just how hard it was during that time. I made these videos and put them on YouTube and I found out that a lot of people were actually listening and watching the videos and getting practical tips and being able to acknowledge and accept their pain too. Yeah. And it made them feel less alone.

Victoria Odekomaya:

Because it was such a tough time for everybody, but then when you lose a partner or friend, that makes it even worse because you don't have any we couldn't go out. No, you know, it was like now you're in by on all yourself. I remember you told me about a story, I think it was at the hospital that you weren't even able to Yeah, you know, um when my husband got sick and we had to take him to the hospital.

LaVreen Hall:

Um, we couldn't even go in. The guard was about ready to pull his gun on me. And that in itself was scary. But what was more scary is you know, my husband was weak. I couldn't go in and help him get to the desk and fill out the paperwork, and he fell out in the lobby, and you know, then I'm waiting to hear what's going on. We dropped him off about eight in the morning, but I didn't find out he was admitted in the hospital room until like 5 30. Wow. And he called me bawling. I've never heard him bawl that way. But he was crying because there were so many kids in there that didn't have their parents and babies who was crying, and that's part of the pandemic that they didn't talk about. That's right. And so um that was kind of devastating. But it was a very uh unusual time. And um, I had three days to bury him before they were gonna put them in the mass grave. So I was arguing with the little guy at the morgue, like, you're gonna release this body right now. But we finally got it done, and we did get him buried in three days, but it was still challenging because you can only have six people at the funeral or at the graveside service. And I have six kids. Two of them couldn't come. Um, and it was interesting because Homeland Security was there, and if you had more than the people, the first two you could find, and then they said after that they were gonna take them to jail.

Victoria Odekomaya:

So it was a very on top of the grieving and everything else that's already happened.

LaVreen Hall:

On top of the grieving and everything else, and then on top of that, I couldn't be at the casket when the other people were there because me and my son had been around him, and then uh they found out I was asymptomatic. So my son and I had to go up first and say what we're gonna say, then we had to wait in the car. So it was just kind of really a very isolating period of time, and I was like, oh God, what do we do? How do we help people? Right. So one of the ways was just to share the story.

Victoria Odekomaya:

Wow. So you turned your pain into helping other people. Yes. That's amazing. Wow. Oh my goodness. So um talk about a little bit about how your house bunched down because that was another thing, right?

LaVreen Hall:

Yeah, in 2019, it was really interesting. What do you mean in 2019 before 2020? Yes.

Victoria Odekomaya:

Oh my god.

LaVreen Hall:

So there was a series of things that happened. So around 2014, 15, uh, a young lady, I call her young, but she was an older lady. But she ran into the back of me, and we didn't realize it at the time, but the tendons in my foot were torn in my ankle. And so, you know, I'm walking and things kept hurting more and more, and I'm like, I don't understand what's going on. So finally we found out I was gonna have to have foot surgery. So I did eight weeks with your leg up in the air, and then I went to physical therapy and she broke my bone. Oh my goodness. And so I had just gotten kind of on my feet, and we were in the habit of going to um lunch with the kids that we have here. I have four kids to live in the city. So we were used to going to lunch, and so my husband was like, Oh, they're not gonna make it, and da-da-da. And I was like, Well, I'm kind of working on something too. And then I heard guys say go to lunch, so I said, Well, we're gonna go ourselves. And so we went ourselves and we came back and there were fire trucks everywhere, and I'm like, Oh my gosh, I thought my neighbor was sick again. And then I realized our house was on fire.

Victoria Odekomaya:

Oh my goodness.

LaVreen Hall:

Yeah, um, it was very interesting. And so then my son was like, Mom, why y'all in a hotel? If it was us, we would be in the house of you, so you gotta come and stay with us. So I moved, uh, we moved in with my son, and uh, that was a really good fun time. I still live with my son. Between him and my daughter, they kind of tug a war with me.

Victoria Odekomaya:

I bet, I bet they want mama, yeah. Yeah, they want mama there. So And then through all of this, something happened, and then you passed away. I mean, you died on, you know, and then Yeah, and it was just really weird.

LaVreen Hall:

Um, but I had COVID left me with a lot of long haul symptoms. So I had spots on my lungs, I was having trouble breathing with my asthma. Uh I was blacking out and just we didn't know why. So they had put in a heart monitor, but it wasn't really showing anything, and I was having seizures and it was just a lot of stuff. So um I was kind of sick that day on a Friday, and I was praying and listening to a sermon on TV, and I got excited because this pastor was in Chicago and he was an old school pastor, but he was full of the spirit, and I got to shouting in my bed. So then I got up and shouted around my bed and got back in the bed, and I heard God say, I still have work for you to do. And I said, Oh, okay, Lord, well, I'll do it, but you know, I can't do it like this, having memory losses, hitting my head, concussions, and I said, if you give the doctor some revelation, let it be fixable, because I don't want nothing I know that ain't fixable.

Victoria Odekomaya:

Right.

LaVreen Hall:

And then let it get fixed. And I went on to sleep and I woke up on the bathroom floor, and I didn't know I had died at the time. But I thought, you know, okay, you know, passed out, hit your head again. My head was banging, and I was like, oh man, I don't have my phone with me. And so I said, Oh, hey, technology. Hey, Siri. I'm like, come on, my son, call my daughter, you know. And uh, after I was able to reach my son, I said, okay, I called my mother and I said, I need you to sing my favorite gospel hymns. And she's like, I'm calling the ambulance. I'm like, Mama, they already on the way. I just need my hymns. And that was so comforting to me. Um, but I kind of don't remember a lot after that. But somehow my daughter got there, she took me to the hospital, and all I remember them saying is color purple, and then everybody was like running and pulling my arms and sticking you with needles, and um I just was like, okay. So I spent the weekend in the hospital. But the funny thing is, I only remember a balladache, a slice of toast, and when the doctor was telling me what was wrong, I was thinking, no, that ain't it. You don't have to that is really all I remember. I don't remember people coming to see me. I don't remember the prayer calls and any of that. But I got home on Monday morning and I was very happy because I was hungry. I'm a foodie. Right. And I just really wanted to eat and go to sleep. Eat good food, not the hospital food. I wanted to eat some good food and go to sleep. And uh I remember they got me in the bed, and when the phone rang, it felt like a boom horn was right here in my ear, and my head was hurting so bad. And I answered and I'm like, I'm wondering who is this lady on the phone? But it was my heart doctor, and she's like, Where are you been? We've been trying to find you all weekend. So uh next thing I know, my kids addressing me, and they're like, You're going back to the hospital. I'm like, I just came home, you know. I could talk, but I couldn't process what was being said. So the words just were like kind of empty meaning. They weren't quite connecting. And um, but they got me back to the hospital, and these doctors kept coming in. I'm like, why? I kept asking, are you gonna do the surgery? Because they told me they're gonna put in the pacemaker. And I kept saying, Are you doing the surgery? And like, no, I'm not doing the surgery. And so after the fourth or fifth one, I was like, Well, why these doctors keep coming in and yeah, not the ones doing the surgery? Um, because you're supposed to be in the morgue, you know, you were dead for 11 seconds. You came through at the last stage of death where you're eliminating and there was no intervention. And he said, But he could see that I wasn't really grasping. So he went and got a picture of a regular EKG in mine. And I was crazy out of it, but I could see it's a big difference. There was no peaks at the top or the bottom, just a little half mound and a line. And I found out later that um they wanted me at the hospital then because I was having a whole beat, then a half, and then it would skip, no beat, and then it would so it was really not very stable. Oh my goodness. But now I do remember everything about that surgery. Wow. And I was happy for the most part. I was like not scared. Um, I was jovial because I knew that God had answered my prayer.

Victoria Odekomaya:

He had already told you I got walk for you to know.

LaVreen Hall:

He had answered my prayer. And so um they were laughing when we was going to the surgery room because I was like, well, what if I have to go to the bathroom? Because they were telling me how long it was gonna take. And they said, We got you covered.

Victoria Odekomaya:

That's the least things you worry about right now.

LaVreen Hall:

The least thing you have to worry about, yes. And um goodness.

Victoria Odekomaya:

But yeah, I remember it all very clearly. That's amazing. And I think the one thing I really um love about your story is uh how you've had all these unique experiences, but you're now turning around to help people. Yeah. You know, you just recently did a retreat. Tell us a little bit about that and why are you even doing the retreat?

LaVreen Hall:

Oh, yeah. So um I did a healing retreat this past weekend and it was awesome. Uh the healing retreat came about because when I got out of the hospital back home after having to put the pacemaker in, I was sitting there and I was kind of just praying, and God said, I want you to do a healing retreat.

Victoria Odekomaya:

Wow.

LaVreen Hall:

And I was like, A healing retreat? But I said, Okay, I'll do it, but maybe next year, maybe not this year. You know? So after a year and a half of doing therapy and going through different things, I heard it again. I said, Oh, okay, I'll do it. And then he gave me the weekend he wanted me to do it. Wow. And then he gave me the title. You are not in this again. And so I said, Okay, well, I'm gonna do it. And so I had called a friend and I said, you know, I'm gonna do this healing retreat because people need healing. On the outside, we're happy, we're moving around, doing things, we're going to work. But on the inside, we got this core experience or this core pain that we're living our lives out of. And we could be so much happier, so much more freedom, and so much whole. We could be whole if we get rid of this pain. Right. And uh healing is a journey, it's not a destination. And so it's not like when you're sick in the hospital and you give you medicine and you come home and you're cured. It's not like that, it's a process. And so we started planning the healing retreat, and God was very pacific on how he wanted the flow to be, what he wanted them to experience. And so um, it was really a time to have an intentional community to heal with. So we kick off the weekend with a gala where you celebrate you, and it was awesome. People felt free and had a good time, and then on Saturday, we did a lot of different workshops and sessions and things to help you just release some of that pain and identify what was really inside that you didn't want other people to see. And then on Sunday we closed with a brunch. And so after that, we have what we call the Rafa experience, where once a month we will get together and we will talk about a different aspect of healing so that no one is left alone with the pain that they remembered or what was brought up for them. And it was just amazing. The women were transformed, and even people that I didn't expect to be delivered during that time, like the DJ was delivered, uh, the caterer was delivered. It was just different people receiving whatever God had for them to receive. And it was amazing, yes. Wow.

Victoria Odekomaya:

So you did DJ was like I it's only that you just DJ and I was like, look, I'm getting something.

LaVreen Hall:

Yes, you know, he um he just talked about, you know, he heard what I said to the women, and he was talking about men need this too. And I'm actually planning a men's retreat, a men's healing retreat, because men do need healing. They hurt just like we hurt. And they often don't have the outlet to talk about it as much as women. You know, as women, we're gonna sit and talk, we're gonna vent, we're gonna share. Right. But men tend to keep it closed in. And so I just want men and women to be healed, right? To be made whole. And our scripture was John 5 and 7 with the man who laid by the pool for 38 years, and then Jesus says, rise up, take up your bed and walk. And I told him, you know, I had a hard time as a child with that story in the Bible because I was like, you know, this is Jesus. You can just reach out and heal the man, you can touch or you can just speak, and it'll be done. And so I was like, why did he have to tell him to rise up? And so during the retreat, one of the things we talked about, I said, you know, to rise is hard. And every time we have a disappointment, every time we have that desperation and that desire, we have to learn to rise up. You know, and I said, think about how hard it was to be by there for 38 years, and now Jesus is telling you to rise up. You know, we're gonna sit here for 20, 30 minutes and we get ready to rise, so we're gonna be like, ooh, you feel it. And so uh we talked about every time you have a disappointment, you have to rise. And so if we don't heal that deep inner pain to rise gets harder and harder to the point where we don't rise anymore.

Victoria Odekomaya:

Oh, wow.

LaVreen Hall:

And so I really want people to be delivered from that.

Victoria Odekomaya:

That's amazing. That's so powerful. And I know part of your walkie is also using the soft skills to help us even with self-care and things like that. So tell us a little bit about how, you know, a lot of our audience are female entrepreneurs, business owners, uh, you know, it's just hard out there.

LaVreen Hall:

It is hard, but um, one of the reasons I developed the self-care course, it's an eight-week course. I developed that because we don't know how to take care of ourselves. And say the game of people in the back. We don't know how to take care of ourselves. We're so busy taking care of everybody else. And when you're an entrepreneur, you're trying to get everything done. And if you're the one-stop shop, you gotta do all the different parts.

Victoria Odekomaya:

And you know how sometimes we always, even though we're tired, we're like, I can do extra things and just keep doing one more and one more.

LaVreen Hall:

Yeah, you know, push through needs to be pushed away. We gotta stop doing that. You gotta stop pushing through when you're tired and exhausted because you gotta learn how to rest. And in the book, I talk about rest is not just about going to. You said the book? Yeah. Oh, okay. Tell us about the book. Well, for the healing retreat, I wrote a book on healing. Okay. Because we have to know how to heal and what healing looks like. Yeah. And so in the book, we talk about rest, and it's the mental rest, the emotional rest, the physical rest, and all that is part of resting. And as women, even as African American or black women, our history with rest is very complicated. And we've been taught that we have to be productive, we got to be active all the time. And that is counterproductive, it's unhealthy. And we can't do that.

Victoria Odekomaya:

Right.

LaVreen Hall:

So um, we talk about healing. Part of your healing is learning how to rest. Um, and self-care is not just taking care of your body, getting your nails done, getting your hair done. It's also caring for your mind, your brain, your organs, your atmosphere, the places that you are. It's a very involved process. Yeah. And so I developed a self-care course as part of my um leadership uh certificate because I wanted them to know that the soft skills that you learn in taking care and managing you transfers into your business, it transfers into your community and your job, your career.

Victoria Odekomaya:

Yeah. Let's talk about mental health because that's another big topic that is huge these days. And I know that, you know, some people don't even agree that is an illness.

LaVreen Hall:

Yeah, mental health is um very important. So during the 12 years where I was bedridden, uh, I kept thinking about the mental health because the doctors were telling me, Oh, it's all in your head, you need to go see a stranger, you need to get to the psychologist. And they were really pretty dismissive. And I said, you know what, Lord, I don't want other people going through this. And everything that was needed was so expensive. Yeah. So I asked God to allow me to be able to help people with their mental health and do it at an affordable price. So um when I was 11, my aunt had a mental illness, and I used to go to the back then, the hospital, mental health hospital, and I would go there and see her. And just looking at the people who was there, I will never forget there was this young man, I keep saying young, but of course they were older. Um, but he only thing he could say was nigger. And no one wanted to help him while he was in there. The nurses were all offended. And um, I remember looking at him saying, he's trying to say something. He just doesn't know how to say it. And so I had an apple, and I went over there and I handed him the apple, and he said, Yes, yes, you know, he was hungry. Um and so I said, you know, if we can learn to hear what's not being said, and if we can give them voice, the voice what they're feeling and their experience, then they can be healed.

Victoria Odekomaya:

That's ooh.

LaVreen Hall:

And so mental health became very important to me. And uh, so I went to school to study and learn mental health when I was working on my Masters of Divinity, and it is very crucial. Yeah. You know, we've been taught that, you know, if you're sick, okay, just keep on moving and take an aspirin. Right. But that doesn't take away the internal conflicts, the internal pains, the flashbacks that you have from the traumas that you have, and then the stressors of just everyday life, whether it's raising kids or being on the job or you know, not making enough money, we have so many things happening in our world that everybody needs to go to a therapist. It needs to be ongoing, it needs to just be part of your routine. Absolutely. Because sometimes you can't lean on your family to do the mental health part. Right. Because sometimes they are what's causing the mental health part. Maybe the other one. Sometimes they need the mental health. Yeah, they themselves need that. Yeah, and you know, and often we surround ourselves with people that are going through the same things that we're going through, so they can't bring you up.

Victoria Odekomaya:

That's right.

LaVreen Hall:

So that's why I think being in a therapist and having mental health coaching, which gives you the skills and the techniques to get through everyday life and that be prepared before that trauma comes. That's right. When you learn these skills, then when things happen, you can utilize them and better navigate the situation.

Victoria Odekomaya:

Wow. So I am so I mean, so I just feel so um what's the word here? I feel very, very inspired by your story that you've taken all of the pain and all the things that you've gone through and turned it around so much so that you have a book, you have a retreat, you speak at different events, you're doing all those things to help others too. So my question for you, for the people that are looking out there, you know, that are watching the show, thinking, How do I get in touch with you? Because I need some help, you know, like what do you have? I know you have that program and you have books. Where can we find your book and how can we get in touch with you so that we can use some of the services that you have?

LaVreen Hall:

So my book should be released at the end of November. It's gonna be on Amazon, and I'm excited. Um, and then I have um I found it fit. And so fit stands for Face Towards God, Financial Freedom and Initiating Healthy Steps, one step at a time. And so that starts in January. I'll be doing another cohort in January. It's a 12-month program, and we focus on your mental, spiritual, relational health, and we build a community to where you can have sisterhood and togetherness. Um, and then I have the self-care course that is gonna start back up in October, the end of October. It's an eight-week course where you're working on that leadership and those soft skills so that when you are more authentic, when you're more whole, you can better negotiate the careers and the jobs. And um so you can get in touch with me by calling my phone number, 317-697-6663. My website is www.livrine, l-a-v-r-e-e-n.org, and my uh email is just words at lavrine.org.

Victoria Odekomaya:

I love that. I love that. So I'm gonna make sure that everything is on the you know link below. But uh just before we wrap up, is there anything of uh any word of encouragement uh or life that you can speak into people that might be watching right now and they may be going through the hardest time of their lives? And what can you say to just, you know, give them that encouragement, that inspiration, and motivation?

LaVreen Hall:

Okay. Um one thing is choose to live. We have to choose life intentionally because there's so many things that beat us down. And I think it's really important to remember that when we're in a trial, we're in the midst of a storm, we can't see beyond the storm, but know that the storm is temporary and that it passes. And we don't have to make our situation or our pain permanent. It's temporary, it's gonna pass. And we need to learn to reach out and get the help that we need, whether it's a therapist or a doctor's. And if your doctors are not responsive, I went to 27 neurologists before I found one that could actually find out what was wrong. Be determined, be persistent, and dream. Dream of being outside of that situation. And so that's what I would suggest to them.

Victoria Odekomaya:

Yeah, I love, love, love that. Your pain is not permanent, it's not permanent. I mean, I feel like it just gives us hope. Because when you have that hope that it's gonna change, then that's already the beginning of the healing process.

LaVreen Hall:

It is amazing, and you have to keep hope no matter what's going on. You have to keep your hope. And you know, I always tell people to pray. If you're not a person who believes in God, then go sit in silence, commune in nature. But you have to be able to seal your mind so that you can start plotting your course.

Victoria Odekomaya:

That's amazing. Wow, thank you so much for coming and just sharing with us. This has been such an amazing story, you know, and for you, and the I mean, word of encouragement as well. Thank you. You're so welcome. Thank you, everybody. Yeah. So, well, I am gonna put all the links to all of you know LaVreene's information down in the description notes. You already know how that goes. Make sure you click the link and reach out to her. She's gonna start a new course in October, and I think that that rolls over, right? Like, so if you don't get into the October, get on the waiting list and for the next one. And then I know there's a um the program started in January as well. The fit program starts in January, and the second healing retreat will be next August. Look at that. So you have all the information. Make sure you sign up for our newsletter so you can be on top of all the news as things are coming up. And but the last thing I think I'm gonna leave you with is that just remember that your pain is not permanent. And keep the hope up. Until next time, have a great day.

Contributor

Victoria Odekomaya

Host