She Did it Anyway

Rochelle Davidson, as a child, learned the value of “doing it anyway,” despite fear and despite, oftentimes, not being the best. She credits an amazing sports coach, Moseley Jack, or respectfully and affectionately called ‘Mr. Jack’ as being the one person who would express belief in her and support and encourage her, not seeing the limitations of a small frame or shyness and fear. 

By the time she was eight years old, she ran her first 10K. 

This belief and encouragement so freely offered by Mr. Jack sparked the value of doing it anyway, despite barriers, and is the golden thread that weaves throughout Ms. Davidson’s life. She grew up pursuing excellence through athletics and gained leadership roles. But a new value emerged; she loved seeing others succeed and helping them reach their goals. She found that she didn’t need or want to be the one in the foreground, but rather the one to come alongside, to walk shoulder to shoulder with others, being a ‘second’ to someone else, supporting them in their goals. Becoming trained as an executive coach was a natural draw for Ms. Davidson, and she worked with industry leaders from several top organizations to help them achieve their goals. 

Part of Ms. Davidson’s story, and what eventually led her to recovery coaching, was her own progression into a reliance on alcohol. She came from a family with no addiction issues, was actively involved in athletics, and achieved a good level of success professionally as an executive coach. However by her mid-30’s and following some personal relationship, health and career losses, a lack of confidence set in, and she began to rely more and more on drinking to get through her days. Her marriage became strained, and upon receiving an ultimatum from her husband in late 2018, she started an Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) with Edgewood Treatment Center. 

This proved to be the catalyst for the change Ms. Davidson needed. As she recovered in her own life, her vision for the future sharpened into serving women who had suffered some loss in their life. She recognized that many women used substances as a form of self-medicating to cope with whatever they were facing. Through her own lived experience, she could now meet their shame with empathy, understanding and compassion. Ms. Davidson became passionate about empowering women with the tools and resources they would need to set new goals and embolden them to offer their gifts to the world. She worked to help women move away from survival mode towards finding what makes them come alive, to grow fully into themselves and their potential, becoming not only possibilities but probabilities, with the awareness that we only have this one precious life. 

Ms. Davidson now sees recovery coaching as a “hidden gem” in the world of coaching, a special niche to serve one of the most vulnerable groups in society, women in recovery. She would like to see recovery coaching become more accessible and even offered as part of the health care system. Though she doesn’t want to be in the spotlight, she loves being a part of a team where her contributions are important and valued. At Still Here, Rochelle has become just that, a valuable part of the training and mentorship team, not only contributing, but inspiring us to reach further, to continue to grow and elevate our offerings, and even when we experience imposter’s syndrome, as we sometimes do, we remember the value of “do it anyway.” 

On behalf of Still Here, thank you, Rochelle, and by extension, the esteemed “Mr. Jack.”