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Meet Susan Goudy, MSW of Pathway to freedom

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Susan Goudy, MSW.

Susan, before we jump into specific questions about the company, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I did not intend to tell my story. On September 19, 2006 at 4:30 a.m., I awoke from a dream in which I revisited a fear of mine from years ago. I used to have a recurring nightmare. In the nightmare, I was trapped in a concrete maze on top of a building. I ran frantically through the maze, gasping for breath, looking for a way out. Every time I thought I was almost out of the maze, I turned a corner, only to run into a man much larger than me, dressed in black and wearing a white mask. I never knew who he was. I haven’t had this nightmare in years, and on that cool September night I wasn’t actually having it either. I was dreaming about remembering the nightmare, looking at a cover for this book. I was noticing the book cover had exactly the same maze as the one in my nightmare.

What a transformation! I am amazed! What was once a symbol for my deep-seated fear has become a symbol of what I am now going to share with you: the path and the journey out of fear and into love. I chose the maze because I thought it would make a cool cover for this book. I did not make the connection between my choice for the book cover and the maze until I had the dream.

In my dream, after discovering the book cover featured the maze, I kept saying to myself over and over, “I have to tell my story! I have to tell my story!” As I was dreaming, I didn’t seem to feel thrilled about the realization of having to tell my story. I knew, though, that this story needed to be told.

Awakening from the dream, I replayed “my story” in my head so that I could tell it. I haven’t told it in a long time. When I counsel people, I encourage them to tell their story once and move on as quickly as possible. I want people to be present in the moment. I also want each of us to realize we have control over our lives in the present time, even if at one time in our lives, we may have had no control. The focus is on becoming empowered. Here goes, here’s my story. I think the best way to share my story with you is to tell it chronologically.

When I was 19 years old, I was in college and in a lot of pain. I couldn’t sit still in my classes, I couldn’t walk straight, and I didn’t sleep well. The constant pain was ruthless. I silently convinced myself that I must have some kind of terminal illness. I felt like I was dying.

Finally, I went to see a chiropractor who used kinesiology and gentle adjusting. He took x-rays and told me that I had the back of a 50-year-old woman. I replied with conviction, “Try 100 years old!” He went on to tell me that if I were to have children, I would have to have C-sections, because my hips and pelvic area were so twisted. Now I knew how messed up I was. Lucky me, I thought to myself. After a lot of work between 19 and 21, and a regular routine of therapy, the doc did help me and I finally started to feel better.

When I was 21, I moved to Arizona, seeking a chiropractor who used kinesiology, and I found someone who used a technique called B.E.S.T. (Bio Energetic Synchronization Technique). Using the B.E.S.T. technique, I felt better and better. Now, at 21, I began working out five or six days a week, something that I was not able to do when I was 19. I fell in love, got married, and at 24, I became pregnant with my first child, and gave birth to Samantha at 25, without a C-section. Two years later, I became sick with chronic sinus problems, which often turned into infections. I finally got sick and tired of being sick and tired and revisited my B.E.S.T. doctor, whom I saw whenever I felt the need.

On this particular sunny Arizona day, I felt as if I had surrendered. I entered the doctor’s office waving my imaginary white flag. I was ready to be well once and for all. The doc spoke two frightening words and a time frame. I was blown away! I had never shared my trauma with him. The words were sexual abuse. The time frame was my childhood between the ages of one and five. “Holy moley, Batman!” How did he do that? I was sexually abused just two months shy of my third birthday by a 16 year old neighbor.

I now understood why the man in my nightmare was dressed in dark clothes and was so much taller than me. The teenager who abused me was much darker in skin color than me. I was just a skinny little girl, with short blonde hair, wearing my yellow dress, not even three. I was oblivious to any kind of danger, because I was playing three houses down with my friends in the front yard.

The predator chose a concrete hallway entrance to his basement to abuse me. I was so small, so helpless. The concrete walls towered over me, without possibility of escape—just like the concrete maze! The back of the house was shaded by a large tree. On that late April afternoon, the sun was in front of the house. The basement hall way was dark, damp, and musty. The maze in my nightmare finally made sense. The effects of the abuse were to surface again, however, in a very unsettling manner.

I have always loved and enjoyed watching my daughter. At the time she was two years old, however, watching her, so close to the age I was when I was abused, caused my body to remember and reconnect with my own experience at her age. I understood all my pain, which started at such a young age. Finally! Wow! What a concept. My daughter was two and the memories of the abuse I experienced were showing up in my body as illness. A quick look back at my childhood shed a little light on my physical
state. I remember always being uncomfortable! Starting at about the age of 10, I used to walk my friends off the sidewalk. I simply couldn’t walk straight.

Now, at 27, I found myself working together with the doc on that miraculous day, in his modestly decorated office. When the abuse came up, I was moved to a private room. The smell of vinyl and fresh paper as it crinkled under my face filled my senses. We cleared out the emotional interference.

One interesting note about my recurring sinus infections and recurring dreams: Before the year my daughter was two, I had never had a sinus infection. During the year my daughter was two, I had one sinus infection after another. Since that day 15 years ago, after clearing the emotional interference with the doc, I have never had another sinus infection. Another amazing thing: Since that day, my recurring nightmare has never occurred again. What a relief! My life has never been the same, and we are talking in a good way!

Following the emotional and physical healing, I moved forward very quickly into the middle of the maze, well on my way to love. Let’s fast forward a bit, so I can share my life with you as I live it today. I am now 55. I feel better than I did at 19. I have four children. Contrary to the original prognosis instructing me to have C-sections, I was able to bring three of my children into this world with natural childbirth.  I work out six days a week. I now hold a master’s degree. When I walk down the street with my friends, I actually walk in the direction I intend, and no one ends up off the sidewalk.

It is so good to be in charge of my life. Sometimes life can be a little scary because I don’t always like what I create, but being in charge is so empowering! I have the power to recreate. I am in the driver’s seat, I am empowered and life is great! In the Journey from Fear to Love Is Shorter Than You Think, I describe the awakening into life that finally freed me from the mental, physical, and spiritual chains of my past. A self-help book written from a spiritual point of view, Journey is sprinkled with tips that will give readers the tools they need to get “present and focused” and to take an honest look at what they are or are not doing to create the lives they currently live.

I know from firsthand experience that living in the shadow of your past can cause you to forget that you have the power to take charge of your life. No matter what may or may not lie in your own past, The Journey From Fear to Love is Shorter Than You Think can help you become more awake, aware, clear, and empowered. It’s time to stop being a victim and to leave excuses behind. It’s time to realize just how powerful and wonderful you are, have been, and will always be!

Has it been a smooth road?
Writing The Journey From Fear to Love is Shorter Than YOU Think came easy but getting it published is another story. My agent started submitting Journey to publishers in 2008. It went to 20 plus big-name publishers and would go all the way to the top. My agent would be sure it was going to be picked up and then it was rejected. One publishing house even looked at it twice. Three different editors finally told me though they loved Journey, their companies were five years overextended and they couldn’t afford to take a risk on a “no name author” like me. 2008 was a recession. After two and a half years of submitting Journey to publishers I took a break. In 2012 I decided to self-publish Journey under my business, Pathway to Freedom. Since 2012 I have been working on producing more content and building my brand. I’ve written another book titled 10 Ways to Eliminate Drama from Your Life; Easy Ways to be More Productive and Successful in Your Work and in Your Life! This book was going out to corporations to consider buying for employee training programs and I had several companies interested. The Coronavirus crisis then hit. I have gotten great feedback from all age groups. I am also a motivational speaker and I have been a guest on many radio shows and podcasts.

Please tell us about the company.
Pathway to Freedom is my publishing company and susangoudy.com is my website. I wrote my first book to be able to help more individuals than I possibly could with the one on one practice I had. When we were not able to get the book published in 2008 due to the recession, I created my own publishing company and put the book in print myself. Through my story of recovery from abuse, along with my background in psychology, counseling, and social work, as well as certifications in neuro-physical reprogramming, bio-energetic synchronization technique, and psychological kinesiology (Psych-K), I have much wisdom and guidance to offer. I won’t let the mainstream publishing business model get in the way of offering that to those that need it. It is my story of recovery that sets me apart from others – I chose to heal from living in the shadow of being a victim and I took my power and my life back. I help others to also take their power back and learn to embrace their power and live in love.

I am an author, speaker, and empowerment advisor. I am available for interviews and speaking engagements. I am known for being straightforward and honest. If I don’t know the answer to a question, I will tell you and I will look for a resource who will have an answer for you. I’m also known for “walking the walk” and not just talking the talk. For example, I encourage people to “love yourself first” and take care of themselves so, they can be their own best version. I practice this in my own life. I’m easy to talk with. I’m very proud of the fact many who have read my books, say they are easy uplifting reads loaded with tools and techniques they can apply immediately. They have also said it feels as if they are having an authentic, transparent, and easy conversation with me over a cup of coffee.

How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
While I don’t have the data to substantiate it, it appears that more people are taking time to read as we have been going through Covid19. My hope is that this trend will continue as people rediscover the joy and uplifting effects of reading. I have taken steps from Journey and my 10 Ways Drama book to write an article titled, 10 Ways to Move Away from FEAR and Drama in the Midst of the Coronavirus. I have also done a video for each step to give more clarity. This has been my attempt to help as many people as I possibly can to navigate through these difficult and uncertain times. In five to ten years I hope to write a couple more books to help inspire people to be their best versions of themselves. I also hope to be reaching a larger audience with my message, “Embrace Your power and Live in Love”.

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