What kind of work would you wake up in a hospital bed eager to do?
And how is editing like being a doula?
The first question is one I answered back in the fall of 2015. That summer, my husband and I had settled into first-time home ownership and I’d “leveled up” professionally, having moved from the Department of Social Services, where I’d been a Family Support caseworker, to Mercy, where I was hired on as a patient benefit and Medicaid advisor. My career seemed to be opening up before me and everything looked good on paper. But I was miserable. I was physically sick every day at work and I was unhappy even when I got home. I felt trapped in my life and was disappointed that I wasn’t shaping up to be the great social servant or public educator I was sure I should be.
I resigned from Mercy and went to work part-part time teaching children’s swim lessons. Like so many creators, I started side hustling: writing and editing for peanuts through a site called Upwork. Amidst the uncertainty, I realized I’d happily wake up in a hospital bed, ask for my laptop, and dive into editing another person’s writing. I’d found a professional passion and was ready to move on from the rescuer narrative that I had to be sacrificing myself in a certain setting to help others or assume my place in the world.
Over the last three years my journey as an editor, creator, and human being has unfolded in sometimes bumpy, but also fantastic ways. As doors have opened (more on that Sunday) so have windows—and my heart and mind. I’ve developed a close working relationship with Erick French, LCSW, author and illustrator of Iphelia: Awakening the Gift of Feeling and have been editing full time for HealthyWay Media, a women’s lifestyle and wellness brand, for over a year.
How is editing like being a doula? is the question on my mind today. I look forward to exploring this and talking about trust, intimacy, destruction, power, surrender, and renewal with anyone who’s interested in the process of editing not just our words, but our inner lives and relationships with the world.
Linsey trained in teaching English as a second language and spent the beginning of her career working with refugees in public education and social service. In addition to her passions for yoga, chakras, and Nepali cuisine, she has interests in Jungian psychology, magical realism, and collaging. Her favorite places in the world are Kurseong, West Bengal, and Ithaca, New York.
Join us
Sunday 19 August
Potluck dinner begins at 6:00 p.m.
Linsey begins sharing at 6:45
At the home of Katrina
Email me for directions
