Hi, I'm Sydney.

A few years ago, you would have found me sitting on my kitchen floor, overwhelmed, exhausted, and wondering how I was supposed to keep carrying everything on my plate.

Today, I live in Texas with my wonderful husband, Alex, and our three energetic boys. But my story started in Utah, where I grew up before life eventually led our family to Wyoming and then Texas. Like many people, I imagined adulthood would feel a little more put together than it actually does.

Instead, I found myself navigating postpartum depression after moving away from family support, raising young children, chronic health challenges, graduate school, and all the invisible pressures that come with trying to be everything to everyone.

And yet, if you had asked me how I was doing, I probably would have told you I was fine.

That's why I am so passionate about the work I do today.

As a keynote speaker, workshop facilitator, and psychology researcher, I help people understand that resilience is not pretending everything is okay. Gratitude is not denying pain. And healing certainly does not come from talking ourselves out of our struggles.

Instead, I teach people how to acknowledge what is hard while still recognizing what is good.

My work combines research, personal experience, and practical tools to help individuals and organizations navigate burnout, build resilience, and create sustainable well-being. I am currently completing my Ph.D. in General Psychology, with research focused on burnout and gratitude among healthcare professionals.

I am also the creator of the ANDD Framework—Acknowledge, Normalize, Differentiate, Decide, a practical approach that helps people respond to life's challenges with greater clarity, self-compassion, and intention.

Whether I'm speaking to healthcare professionals, corporate teams, women's groups, faith communities, or students, my goal is always the same: to help people feel seen, understood, and equipped with tools they can actually use.

Because one of the most important things I've learned is this:

You do not have to choose between honesty and gratitude.

You can be grateful and overwhelmed.
Hopeful and hurting.
Strong and struggling.

Both can be true.

And that's where healing begins.