“I am quite reflective but never understood how my beliefs impact my thoughts and also that I could change them and that knowledge has changed everything!! Thanks Mars for being a wonderfully wise and inspiring coach. Make a commitment to yourself and do it with Mars, she really is a goddess!!”
“I feel so seen and so moved. Mostly I feel like you were completely present — such a gift. You listened generously and responded with wisdom and that beautiful dance of question - response - revelation.”
“In the [short space of] time that Mars coached me I felt simultaneously safe and held but also received a needed kick up the bum. Mars enabled me to see how the things I use to beat myself with are actually what I can embrace to reclaim my power.”
“She helped me get out of my own way. I wanted to achieve things; I wanted to be a success. But I was giving lots of excuses as to why I couldn’t. I didn’t think I deserved it. I didn’t think I was good enough. But working with Mars, she helped me realise, we all have these amazing skills and talents, and there’s no point in us hiding our light behind a bushel when we need to step up, step out, and shine.”
Black-bodied women are rising. We are seeing and hearing one another, and realising that we’re not alone.
But there’s still a narrative that upholds the idea of Black women as the servers, nurturers, educators, caregivers, and doers. Rather than well-rounded, whole individuals.
Black women are often seen as “human doings” rather than human beings—an example of the intersection of misogyny and racism (misogynoir) that is uniquely experienced by Black-bodied women.
Black women are unable to just be. For centuries, we’ve been told to be strong and silent, but I’m going to help you to just “be.”
When you work with me, you have space to grieve and breathe, where it’s okay to show up as you.
The term was coined by Resmaa Menakem in the book “My Grandmother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies.” I use it for a couple of reasons.
Although my name might make you think of the sweet, chocolatey, comforting candy you’ve grown up with, I’m more like the Roman god of war. When people ask what coaching with me is like, I tell them “I’ll be holding you safely whilst kicking your butt”.
The first half of my career was spent working as a doula and birth activist, working for better outcomes and more equitable treatment for Black- and Brown-bodied women.
After decades of coaching pregnant women and other doulas, my work evolved to coaching those outside of the childbirth year too.
I have a knack for helping women find their voices and take the leap to create positive change in their lives, and my work has—and always will— centre the elevation of Black women.
“IT’S NOT ABOUT SUPPLICATION; IT’S ABOUT POWER. IT’S NOT ABOUT ASKING; IT’S ABOUT DEMANDING. IT’S NOT ABOUT CONVINCING THOSE WHO ARE CURRENTLY IN POWER. IT’S ABOUT CHANGING THE VERY FACE OF POWER ITSELF.”
— Kimberle Williams Crenshaw
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