Her Story
About Camelia
I've been in my field for over 15 years, and my journey has taken many paths. I started out as a chemist, a chemical biologist, doing research at Cedars-Sinai in the cardiology department. My undergrad was in chemical biology, then I went back to school to become a nurse and got my master's in public health. Along the way, I've done a lot of wellness coaching and wellness education. I've been a nurse in labor and delivery, medical surgical units, and urgent care. I also do wilderness medicine as a ski patroller during wintertime in Big Bear. Besides that, I do concierge medicine, work in a few different mental health clinics as a medical consultant, and currently serve as an advisor on a few different boards for different health and wellness startups. I coordinate medical missions in third world countries with world-renowned surgeons, trying to get donations from different companies for the people we're going to serve and for local nurses there. My most notable professional achievement is going back to school after 12 years had passed since I received my master's. Last year I decided to go to school, and I just finished yesterday. It was a one-year program that I did on top of everything else I was doing. When life was lifing, I felt like I was working 100 hours a week with school and all the things. What inspired me to get into my field is that I love helping people. I want to be for people what I wish I had, whether as a patient wishing for a good nurse, or in nursing school wishing for a good professor who cared and taught all aspects of nursing, not just what the textbook teaches. When I do my coaching, it's holding people's hand and being a guide and support through tough times in their life, whether through a breakup, job transition, loss, or grief. I've done a lot of things alone and solo in my life, and I've had to figure things out and pave the path for myself. I don't consider myself an expert, but I do see myself as a few steps ahead of some other people, and when I am ahead in life experience, I would love to help.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Camelia
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to having gone through tough times and wanting to better myself and put myself out there to help others. Some of the things that I went through alone were pretty crappy, and if I can help somebody get through that with a little bit of ease and good support, then that's what keeps me going and motivated. I've done a lot of things alone and solo in my life, and I've had to figure things out and pave the path for myself. I don't consider myself as an expert, but I do see myself as a few steps ahead of some other people, and when I am ahead in life experience, I would love to help.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
I think I give a lot of advice, but I don't know if I've received much. What I would say with the experience that I have now is that when you get into a career, make sure the place and the culture is aligned with you, and they actually care about you as a human. There's a lot of places that just treat us as a head and a body, like, oh, great, you're here, check mark, and if you're not here, Sarah or James is instead of you. So, making sure it's aligned with you and your goals, and they care about you.
03What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The biggest growth for me has been just from living life and experiencing life, and doing a lot of introspection work as a day-to-day kind of activity. I'm always very curious about why we do what we do, why we show up the way we show up, why are others the way they are. I've sat in 10-day silent meditation retreats multiple times where there's no phone, no book, no notebooks, and it's just you with your thoughts. I realized how much all of us, including myself, run away from the thoughts that go on in our mind, and we just make ourselves busy with work, and dogs, and kids, and partners, and friends, but we never sit to actually get to know ourselves. I think that's our biggest success factor. If we actually know ourselves, then from there, we can achieve whatever we want to achieve, get to wherever we want to get to. It's great that I have all these degrees, but I would say the biggest thing has been actually spending time to get to know myself and kind of doing an internal surgery without understanding. I want to be for people what I wish I had. I want to be well-balanced and prevent burnout. I love helping people, and everything that I do, from nursing to coaching, it all basically comes from wanting to be there for others the way I wish someone had been there for me.
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