Christine Hurst, MA, LCPC
ACPI Certified Coach for Parents and Stepparents
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Are you the comfortable, competent and confident stepmom you want to be?
If not, I am here to help! As a stepmom coach, I help stepmoms navigate the confusing and emotional journey of stepmotherhood to find their role with purpose and authenticity.
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Using therapeutically informed and personally tested strategies,I help stepmoms go from struggling and alone to confident and supported so that you can overcome your stepmom insecurities.
BECOME A CONFIDENT STEPMOM
Build a blended family life that you can be proud of.
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It’s okay to feel alone, out of place, and even guilty…
Do you wake up everyday thinking you’ve shown up unexpectedly in someone else’s life and blame yourself for it?
Do you struggle to fit in, in your own home?
Do you feel like you have no control as a stepparent?
Have you been immersed with your stepparenting role and now struggle to find your identity?
You are not alone, we all have felt this way at some point on our stepmomming journey.
But I’m glad you are here, wanting a better life for yourself, your stepkids and your family.
And I’m happy to help.
Because I’ve been there and I know how frustrating, defeating, and embittering these broken-down feelings can be.
Fifteen years ago, I became a stepmom. It has been one of the most interestingly challenging transformations of my life. There were times I felt like an unanticipated guest in my home, and I have struggled with these emotions.
At times, it was a lonely road. I had questions, but couldn’t find answers. The resources I found were shallow and couldn’t provide the in-depth understanding I needed to navigate my stepmom role successfully.
So, I set out to create that support, the support I wish I had, for others. And with my background in therapy, fifteen years as a stepmom and twenty years working clinically with individuals and couples, I found the answers I was looking for. Thus, I created my coaching business Stepmommed.
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And I’m here to share these tips, and resources with as many stepmoms struggling with fitting in, finding a place and living their best life.
As a Certified Stepparent Coach, I’m going to hold you by the hand and show you how to manage your expectations, set boundaries, and build the blended family you’ve always dreamed of.
Stepmom Insecurities
Being a stepmom isn’t something most of us dreamed about becoming. It often isn't the road that you imagined for yourself.
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For some of us, we don't have many, if any, examples of stepmothers in our life. Or, if we do, maybe it isn't a pleasant. So, we are left with figuring it out as we go without any map guiding us.
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This leaves us with a lot of insecurities regarding our role with our partner, the stepchild/stepchildren, and the ex.
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As these struggles continue, we may begin to resent our partners, and subsequently, their child. Then, struggle with feeling guilty for resenting them.
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If you are at this stage, know your feelings are valid and you are not alone.
As an Intentional Stepmom Coach, I will work with you in:
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Understanding your feelings on a deeper level.
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How to manage your emotions and adjust your expectations.
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How to overcome your insecurities and embrace your strengths.
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How to let go of resentments and find a path forward.
Relationship Struggles
Often, the most fragile relationship in this system is the relationship between you and your partner. And, as stepmoms we often feel this on an instinctual level. It may or may not have been said, but we know it to be true.
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You want to talk to your partner about how you feel about your role, their kids or the ex’s behavior. But these are sensitive topics and you may find yourself struggling to have successful conversations. Your questions, requests and demands may trigger defensiveness driving a wedge between the two.
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Thankfully, you can do this by implementing specific communication strategies that will help them to understand your feelings and challenges to coparent effectively.
As an Intentional Stepmom Coach, here's how I will help:​
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We will work together to understand where the communication breakdown occurs.
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We will develop communication strategies you can implement to have conversations that help develop a team mindset approach.
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We will understand the difference between needs and wants, develop boundaries, and how to speak about our boundaries with our partner.
Stepfamily Dynamics
Most of us stepmoms knew that our role was going to have it's challenges, but we often did not have any idea how challenging it really was going to be.
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Let's face it, stepfamilies are structurally very complicated.
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1) The children have two homes
2) There are multiple adults trying to parent the children.
3) Bio-mother is either actually present or in memory.
4) The ex if present, whether we like it or not is a "part" of the family system.
5) The ex if not present, is still a part of the family system through fantasy.
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Coparenting takes a toll on most of us; we work so hard to do what's best for our families. We want to connect with partners, our stepchildren, and maybe our own children.
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Often, through this process of trying to figure out our role, trying to have a partnership, and making space for the stepchildren we lose sight of ourselves. We struggle to find space for our personal needs and wants.
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As an Intentional Stepmom Coach, I will:
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Show you how to take a step back and re-adjust your role as needed.
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Show you how to schedule and reschedule responsibilities.
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Find a balance while living your life and stepparenting.
Ready to get started?
My support is inclusive but not limited to the issues I listed above, because no matter what your stepparenting challenges are, as an experienced stepmom coach, I have just the right tools and strategies to guide you to overcome them and create a loving, peaceful, blended family.
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Please Contact Me