Meet Vanessa Cardoza

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Vanessa Cardoza. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Vanessa, so excited to have you with us today and we are really interested in hearing your thoughts about how folks can develop their empathy? In our experience, most folks want to be empathic towards others, but in a world where we are often only surrounded by people who are very similar to us, it can sometimes be a challenge to develop empathy for others who might not be as similar to us. Any thoughts or advice?

The conditions of my childhood that allowed me to develop empathy are: neglect, abandon, traumatic stress and psychological abuse. Because of my lived experiences, I developed a heightened sense of awareness to other’s needs and feelings. When I was 8 years old, I was adopted out of the California Foster System and immersed in the church culture. This helped me learn to see my self-worth and value unattached to the circumstances of my upbringing. I fostered a sense of understanding of others because I had been through a lot of pain. I was able to see my pain through the eyes of an unconditionally loving being (who I called God) and felt accepted just as I am. Adopting this believe about myself helped me relate with others and meet them with compassion. I have learned that we are all connected and should lead with love in all things because Life is challenging.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

I am a human services counselor who specializes in addictions and recovery behaviors. I help individuals who have suffered from addiction to substances and emotions learn to introspectively analyze their behaviors. What is beautiful about this process is the transformations I have witnessed in my 13+ years of experience. The day-1 intake pictures compared to their day-90 exit pictures are so inspiring. You can always see the visible transformation because they have been doing the internal excavation and healing.
At Ebb and Flow Therapeutics, the mission is to provide recovery for all hearts with a vision to impact positive change through ripple effects of healthier ways of being. Right now, I am offering 1:1 services for counseling and recovery where I am working with an individual for 90 days. I utilize my education and experience along with esoteric wisdom and spiritual cleansing practices in order to provide a holistic solution to finding their root cause of a problem.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

I have been most impacted by resilience, interpersonal communications skills and knowledge of the synapse in the addicted brain that respond when activated by natural chemicals such as dopamine and norepinephrine vs the interaction of illicit substances.
Something that was very key for me when I was first starting out was having a healthy balance between self-care practices outside of work. I placed a firm boundary between my professional self and my personal self. I made sure to eat foods I enjoyed, moved my body through exercise and stretching and getting to bed at a consistent time every night to ensure I was well-rested for the day. The work you do is mentally and emotionally exhausting so the best thing you can do is make sure you are taking care of yourself with the same passion as you work.

Looking back over the past 12 months or so, what do you think has been your biggest area of improvement or growth?

Over the past 12 months, I have gained a new perspective toward my true expression of myself as a role model and leader for others. I struggled a lot with low-self worth and lack of confidence in my innate gifts and talents. I wrote myself off as not good enough because I continued to hold myself to impossibly high standards of performance. I have grown in the area of self-compassion and grace. This has allowed me to show up for others from a place of love and empathy without trying to be perfect.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Vanessa Cardoza; Ebb and Flow logo created by Mallory Mckenzie

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