A SOLO mum, abuse survivor and empowerment coach from Warrington is launching her first book, Time to Ignite – The 5 Step Mindfulness system to improve your well-being an ignite your spark – on Friday.
Louisa Herridge, 41, (pictured) from Woolston, will, in doing so be raising money for the Countess of Chester Hospital Maternity Ward.Louisa, writer, speaker and founder of Mamas Ignited hopes the book will help her continue her mission to inspire other mums.She has quit teaching in the midst of the pandemic to launch her project – supporting other mums especially those who, like her, have suffered trauma – to find their spark, so that they can turn up the dial on living lives they actually love.
Last year, Louisa collaborated in a book called “Pride – motivation and inspiration for women juggling motherhood and business” and in April this year, she took to the stage as a key speaker at a global entrepreneurial event, BEE Inspired, sharing her journey and her knowledge worldwide. She said; “I felt empowered after writing my story of survival, when it was published – the feedback I got from readers and strangers reaching out to me about how it had inspired them – I accepted and believed that I could inspire other women.”
In the first stages of last year’s pandemic, Louisa developed beyond the classroom and trained in mindfulness and relaxation coaching, sharing the wonder and healing that simple mindfulness can bring with the power of connecting the body and mind. Initially working with children, Louisa soon realised that actually mums were in the most need of support, as due to lockdown, women’s mental health was suffering – and this concerned Louisa.
Through launching Mamas Ignited, Louisa was able to re-connect with mum-of-three Becks Jones who she had originally met on maternity leave whilst living in Wirral. Having supported each other through the early years of motherhood, Louisa and Becks lost touch when Louisa relocated from Wirral to escape her abusive partner.
Connecting again via social media, Becks was inspired by Louisa’s story.
She said: “I think Louisa’s strength, with what she has been through and now what she is achieving is just incredible.”
Becks is not without her own trauma. The year after losing her mum, she became a one in 100 statistic, losing her son Oscar in 2018, when he was stillborn at Countess of Chester Hospital. Living with the grief of losing her son, Becks has set up Oscar’s Mission as his legacy.
In March, Becks announced that she would be taking on her biggest challenge yet. On May 28, she will be Stand Up Paddling the 100km of the Wirral Peninsula over three days – raising awareness of stillbirth and fundraising for the Countess of Chester maternity unit.
To donate to Oscar’s Mission https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/oscarsmisson
