Daily Archives: May 11, 2025

It’s Easy to Say ‘Just Do It’ When You’ve Never Had to Struggle

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“It’s Easy to Say ‘Just Do It’ When You’ve Never Had to Struggle”
By A.L. Childers

Some people really don’t get it.
You open your heart, your pain, your exhaustion—and they say things like:
“Well, just leave him.”
“Why don’t you go back to school?”
“You should take a break and do something for yourself.”

These are the people who always had someone to fall back on. A parent to wire money in emergencies. A spouse who emotionally showed up. A friend who stepped in without being asked. A safety net that held them even when they made bad decisions.

They mean well, but they speak from a place of insulation. They’ve never had to climb out of a hole without someone handing them a rope.

When life kicked them down, someone opened a door.
When life kicked me down, I had to kick back just to survive.

The Truth About Support Systems

If you’ve never struggled to survive alone, truly alone, then you don’t know how heavy the simplest decision can be.
You’ve never had to wonder:

  • If I leave him, will I have a place to sleep?
  • If I say how I really feel, will I be abandoned—again?
  • If I can’t hold it together, who’s going to catch my kids when I fall apart?

Your advice might come from a kind heart, but it lacks lived reality. You don’t understand that some of us aren’t afforded the luxury of “just doing it.”

Because for us, the consequences are real. They’re not a bad week. They’re a life-altering collapse we can’t recover from without help we don’t have.

What I Wish People Understood

If you’ve always had help, please know: you’re lucky. That’s not a weakness—it’s a gift. But don’t confuse it for moral superiority or hard-earned wisdom.

Don’t look at your friend and say, “If I were you, I would…”
Because you’re not me.
You had options.
I had survival.

I don’t get to gamble on my life falling apart. Because no one’s coming to rescue me.

If You’re the Friend Without the Safety Net

This blog is for you.
The one whose “Plan B” is just praying Plan A works.
The one who listens to advice you can’t afford to take.
The one nodding politely at people who mean well but don’t get it.

You are not lazy. You are not weak. You are not stuck because you’re scared.
You are resourceful, resilient, and wise enough to know that your survival depends on playing your cards very carefully.

You’re not failing—you’re navigating a minefield with no map.

And I’m proud of you.

Disclaimer:
This blog reflects the personal experience of the author and those like her who have had to endure life without a safety net. It is not intended as medical, legal, or psychological advice. Always seek support from professionals or certified organizations when needed.

About the Author:
A.L. Childers is the author of No Parachute: Born Without a Safety Net and Still Standing and a fierce voice for women navigating life with no fallback plan. She writes for the ones who were left to figure it out alone—and still did. Visit her blog at TheHypothyroidismChick.com for more stories of survival and strength.

No Parachute: What It’s Like to Be Born Without a Safety Net

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No Parachute: What It’s Like to Be Born Without a Safety Net
By A.L. Childers

This blog is for those of us who were born without a parachute.

For the ones who didn’t get “rescued” when life turned to hell.
Who didn’t get second chances from forgiving parents, financial bailouts from spouses, or even emotional validation from someone who gave a damn.

We didn’t inherit a support system.
We inherited survival.

When You’re Your Own Emergency Contact

There are people out there who cannot fathom making every decision without backup.
They’ve always had someone to fall back on—mom, dad, a partner, a trust fund, or even a best friend who shows up before they even say “I need you.”

But then, there are people like us.

We are the emergency contact.
We are the fallback plan.
We are the late-night problem solver, the crisis negotiator, the emotional anchor.

Even when we’re breaking, we don’t get to fall apart.

Advice from the Privileged Feels Like a Slap in the Face

“Just take a break.”
“Ask for help.”
“Start over.”

Start over… with what? With who?
When no one is waiting to catch you, every step is a calculation:
How much will this cost me—emotionally, financially, mentally?

We don’t get to “burn bridges” when we’re already stranded.
We don’t get to “cut people off” when no one was ever really there.

The world loves giving advice to people they’ll never have to live as.

The Weight of a Loveless Life Isn’t Laziness. It’s Logistics.

I’m stuck in a marriage with a man who doesn’t care.
He doesn’t ask about my day. He doesn’t see me. He doesn’t love me in the way I needed someone to love me.

And before anyone dares say, “Then why don’t you leave?”—let me stop you there.
It’s not fear that keeps women like me in place.
It’s the brutal arithmetic of life.

Bills. Kids. Health.
Who helps when you walk away?
When there’s no mother to stay with, no brother to borrow from, no family with a spare bedroom or a spare dollar—you do the math differently.

For the Ones Who Have Always Had to Figure It Out Alone

If you’ve ever sat in silence because you had no one to call…
If you’ve ever swallowed your pain because your sadness made others uncomfortable…
If you’ve ever been surrounded by people but still completely unsupported…
Then you know what it means to be born without a parachute.

You weren’t raised with emotional stability.
You weren’t taught that someone would come for you.
You were taught to endure.

And you’ve done that. Day after day.

Resources for Those Who Have Only Themselves

You’re not alone in your loneliness. Here are some real support tools—judgment-free, low-cost, and community-based:

Closing Words: We Are Not Broken—We Were Just Never Carried

People like us don’t walk around with safety nets.
We walk tightropes—every single day.
But we walk them anyway.
That’s not weakness. That’s grit.

So if no one told you lately:
You are doing the damn thing.
Without applause. Without help.
And you deserve respect for surviving what others were rescued from.

About the Author
A.L. Childers writes for the overlooked, the unheard, and the underestimated. As a woman who has spent her life without a support system, she understands the silent strength it takes to keep showing up when no one’s there to catch you. Find more of her words at TheHypothyroidismChick.com, where truth and tenderness meet.

“Built-In Safety Nets: What the Privileged Don’t Understand About Survival Without Support”

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“Built-In Safety Nets: What the Privileged Don’t Understand About Survival Without Support”
By A.L. Childers

Introduction
Some people grow up with the security of a net—a built-in safety net of parents, siblings, a spouse, or even generational wealth that quietly cushions every fall. And while that’s not a crime, it becomes deeply frustrating when those same people dish out advice to friends who’ve never had that luxury—completely unaware of how insulated they’ve always been.

This blog is for those of us who were born without a parachute. Who didn’t get “rescued” when life turned to hell. Who didn’t get second chances from forgiving parents, financial bailouts from spouses, or even emotional validation from someone who gave a damn.

I’m one of those people.

My Story: No Net. No Rescue. Just Me.

I didn’t grow up with a soft place to land. I didn’t have parents who could swoop in and fix things when I was in trouble. No siblings sending money when I was down. No husband who checks in to see how I’m really doing. I’m in a loveless marriage with a man who couldn’t care less about my soul, my health, or my happiness.

But I stay—because survival doesn’t always come with options. And let’s be clear: staying is not weakness. Sometimes, it’s strategy. It’s survival. And no, you don’t understand unless you’ve been here.

The Blind Advice of the Privileged

If you have:

  • A mom you can run home to when life crumbles
  • A spouse who co-regulates your nervous system
  • A family that circles around you when you need help

Then you don’t know what it’s like to survive without that. And you shouldn’t be giving advice to people who do.

“Just leave him.”
“Why don’t you go back to school?”
“You should try therapy.”

All wonderful ideas… if you’re not crushed under financial pressure, emotional fatigue, or decades of trauma.

What It’s Really Like to Have No Support System

Having no support system means:

  • You become your own emergency contact.
  • You talk to yourself because you have no one else.
  • You lie awake with decisions that could break you because no one else is going to fix them.
  • You stay silent because your pain makes people uncomfortable.

People like me? We’re not “too proud to ask for help.”
We just know help isn’t coming.

Why We Stay in Loveless Marriages and Hard Situations

When you’ve never been safe, even broken stability can feel safer than free-fall.

We stay:

  • Because rent is cheaper split.
  • Because the kids need school clothes.
  • Because single motherhood with no tribe is brutal.
  • Because trauma makes you believe you’re unworthy of more.

Resources for Those With No Safety Net

If you’re surviving without support, here are a few lifelines that don’t require a family name or a spouse who cares:

Closing Thoughts: A Letter to the Ones Who Never Had a Net

If this is you—surviving day to day without emotional, financial, or family backup—I see you. I am you.

You are not weak. You are not broken. You are adapted. You are surviving a life most people couldn’t stomach. And the advice-givers? Let them talk. They’re playing life on beginner mode.

We are on expert.

And even if no one else ever tells you: I’m proud of you.

About the Author
A.L. Childers is a mother, author, and advocate for the unheard. Raised without a safety net and still standing strong, she writes for those who feel invisible in a world built for the privileged. You can find her work at TheHypothyroidismChick.com, where she blends truth, trauma, and transformation with grace and grit.

🖋️ From Pennies to Power: Why I’m Leaving Insurance Burnout Behind and Building My Own Empire

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🖋️ From Pennies to Power: Why I’m Leaving Insurance Burnout Behind and Building My Own Empire

By Audrey Childers | The Hypothyroidism Chick | Future Mobile Notary & P&C Pro

Let’s be real—I’m tired.
Tired of making other people rich while I work for pennies on the dollar.
Tired of being micromanaged, underpaid, and overworked.
Tired of building someone else’s dream while mine sits in the corner, barely breathing.

So, I’m done.
And here’s why: the May 16th ACA Marketplace rule changes are the final push I needed to take full control of my future.

🔁 What’s Changing in the Health Insurance World?

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is rolling out stricter regulations that will affect every agent still tied to the Marketplace. While I’ve been helping clients for years, the new rules aren’t about supporting agents—they’re about surveilling us.

Major ACA Changes Coming May 16, 2025:

  1. Recorded Consent is Now Mandatory
    • Before you can even help a client, you must record a script-based verbal consent.
    • This consent must be saved for 10 years. (Yes, ten.)
  2. You Must Present All Plans
    • No more recommending a solid fit—agents are now forced to go through every option, even if it’s not ideal for the client.
    • This extends the call, invites confusion, and increases the risk of compliance violations.
  3. Call Recording Requirements
    • Every call must be recorded and stored. This includes follow-ups, service calls, and casual check-ins.
  4. Commission Oversight
    • CMS will be auditing agents’ commissions and plan structures to look for “unfair advantages.”
    • That means if you earn more on one plan, expect extra scrutiny.
  5. Shifting Focus to Life Insurance & Catastrophic Plans
    • Many companies are now pushing life insurance and high-deductible catastrophic plans to boost profits—not because they help families, but because they increase commission structures.

Here’s the truth:
If you’re only licensed for Health, these changes mean more work, more stress, and no extra pay.

🛑 So I’m Taking the Exit Ramp—and Building My Own Lane

I’ve already enrolled in my Property & Casualty (P&C) license class and my Notary class, which ends June 18th. I plan to become a Mobile Notary & Loan Signing Agent, working on my own terms, setting my own schedule, and charging what I’m worth.

No more selling my soul for $20/hour.
No more compliance headaches over consent recordings.
No more praying a supervisor lets me take a bathroom break.

🔑 Why Notary Work + P&C Is My New Game Plan

✅ Property & Casualty License:

  • Opens the door to auto, homeowners, renters, and business insurance
  • Helps diversify my services beyond ACA
  • Offers real income growth with independent or agency paths

✅ Mobile Notary + Loan Signing Agent:

  • Earn $75–$200 per signing
  • Serve hospitals, jails, law offices, and real estate closings
  • Charge travel, time, and printing fees (beyond the state-mandated $10 notarization fee)
  • Flexible. Mobile. Lucrative.

💼 I’m Launching My Own Notary Business

My dream business name? Southern Signature Co.™
It reflects who I am—Southern strength sealed with precision.
I’m not just creating a job. I’m building a legacy. One that I own. One that no algorithm or policy change can take away.

📚 Resources & References:

⚠️ Disclaimer:

This blog reflects my personal experience and career shift. It is not intended to replace legal, tax, or professional licensing advice. Always consult with state licensing boards and regulatory agencies before making business decisions.

✨ About the Author

Audrey Childers is a multi-licensed professional, writer, and founder of The Hypothyroidism Chick. She’s built a career empowering others to heal, hustle, and break free from burnout. With years of experience in ACA health insurance, she’s now reclaiming her independence through Property & Casualty licensing and mobile notary work—proving it’s never too late to rewrite your story.