Margaret Zachary

Imagine you’re on your way to work, running early as usual,when you see a small black and white animal in a parking lot, running in circles. Upon closer inspection, you realize this little creature is a skunk, and he has his head stuck inside a yogurt container. He’s frantic, panicked, and stressed out, and he’s running in perfect circles, not knowing how to save himself. So now you’re faced with an ethical dilemma—Do I help this little guy, knowing the inevitable will happen if I do? Or do I pretend I don’t see him and continue my drive to work?” 

This ridiculous story is true: I stopped to help this skunk. I caught him, held his neck with one hand, and pulled off the Yoplait container with the other. Then I should have run. However, the same impulse that compels us to stare at a car accident compelled me to look at his little face; after all, this was my very first encounter with a skunk, and for a second, I thought we might have a “Snow White” bonding moment since I saved his life. 

We did not. And I’m glad I had an extra tomato sauce lying around.

I share this story because we all have had, at one point or another, a proverbial yogurt container stuck on our heads. We’ve run in circles, frantic, panicked, and stressed out, unable to see a way forward. Sometimes, solutions have seemed so out of reach that it was difficult to move at all, and we needed someone to come along and yank the yogurt container off our faces to see again. 

As your coach, I will walk beside you, helping you learn how to remove the blocks that are between where you are and where you want to be. I will help you identify your feelings and triggers and learn how to control them, instead of letting them control you. And in the moments where you feel lost, afraid, or as though your life is spinning in circles, I will be there to encourage and empower you to remove your yogurt container yourself so you can see again. 

Just please don’t thank me the way the skunk did.

Margaret McCormick is a core energy coach in the Austin area. She partners with survivors of unexpected life events to help them regain control over their minds, bodies, and spirits.