“Welcome! I’m Sujata Uppal (pronounced like Opal with a U)
My goal is to guide you through divorce with confidence so that you can begin again, dream again, live again, and love again™!
I am part maverick, part pathfinder, part leader, and 100% dedicated to helping women transition through divorce so they come through feeling strong, confident, and excited about creating the next phase of their life! Throughout my life, I have broken the molds that did not fit, found new ways of doing things, and then shared that knowledge with others.
I am passionate about women’s issues as they pertain to self-esteem, self-love and self-worth. Divorce challenges all of these! I work with women who are dealing with divorce so that they empower themselves, build a new life, and embrace a brighter future than they ever thought possible.
How It All Started
My life in the U.S. started when I left India to come to Ohio for a Master’s degree in Sociology (when many considered that I should have been looking for a suitable boy to marry). Soon afterwards, I fell in love and got married (it wasn’t until my divorce many years later that I truly understood the concept of ‘falling’ in love!) During the 25 years that I was married, I wore many hats – devoted mother, supportive wife to a busy executive, college-level educator, entrepreneur, non-profit chapter founder, board member, editor, Student Advisory Council (SAC) chair, and myriad others that are on my resume along with many that aren’t – chauffeur mom, nurse, cook, house cleaner, handy-woman, project manager, interior designer, crafter… the list goes on. The many roles that I have lived, many at the same time, made me an extremely creative and fast-thinking problem-solver as well as adept at juggling many balls in the air at the same time, without any of them falling – until I was undergoing my divorce!
The skills that I gained during my marriage were nothing compared to those that I gained at the end of it! Life was going on very well (or so I thought) when the D word became a reality and brought with it a tsunami of emotions, decisions, and long-term implications. Hurricanes, I have lived through (I am a South Florida resident after all), but this I wasn’t prepared for. It took me a few years to get over the trauma, wrap my head around what had happened, learn some much needed life lessons, regroup, and then re-create myself yet again, this time with even more determination, fortitude, and focus.
There are many things I learned as a result of my own divorce. Many were a result of mistakes I made; mistakes that could have been avoided if I had found the right guidance. These mistakes cost me a lot of money and brought me a lot of pain. There were times I wasn’t even sure that I would make it through this process with sanity and financial security. To guide myself through it I introspected, analyzed, journaled, and read everything on the subject of divorce I could lay my hands on. Research and analysis became my life-line! In the end, I figured out a strategy that got me the outcome that I wanted but not without the process taking it’s toll on me and my finances.
The break-down of my marriage sent me on a 7 year long journey of learning about marriage and divorce. As a Sociologist I had studied these in depth but not so personally. I delved into questions about who we marry, why we marry them, why we stay married, and ultimately, why we end that marriage. As mentioned earlier, I studied divorce in great detail as well. I wanted to know why some divorces are more difficult than others, how the process unfolds, the transitions that accompany it, the challenges, both avoidable and unavoidable that present themselves, as well as the opportunities that it presents. I wanted to gain a picture of divorce in its entirety…and I did! I had decided that I would use my background, education, and personal experience to help other women avoid the trauma and pain that I had been through. Doing so not only became me purpose but also my way of honoring my own experience.
I added three certifications to my credentials. I am a certified Life Coach (designed to curate life purpose as well as career path), Divorce Coach, and Singles Relationship Coach. My goal in getting these certifications is to help women through all the stages of divorce, as well as offer many ways of rebuilding their lives. These certifications, along with my Masters in Sociology and close to 10 years of college-level teaching, completed any gaps that I might have had.
I would NEVER want to go through a divorce again, but it transformed me in ways I could NEVER have imagined. In fact, I would say that the divorce gave me – ME! Up until the divorce, I didn’t know myself. Now, I couldn’t stop getting to know myself! I needed to, in order to process my marriage, my divorce, and where to go from there. I had to know who I truly am so I examined my core beliefs, my values, and my relationships. By evaluating my skills, talents, capabilities, and work experience, I could tie everything together to create the next phase of my life in a way that is aligned with my passion and purpose in life.
I educate, guide, and mentor women going through the transition of divorce so that they can also find their true north. Divorce is not the same for everyone, nor is the recovery and rebuilding afterwards, but it is the same in that it causes a ripple effect in EVERY aspect of a woman’s life (and some men too, but my focus is primarily on women), often all at the same time. Times like these require special navigation to keep oneself from capsizing.
I help women gain a sense of calm, control, and captainship, so that they can maneuver all facets of divorce in all of the stages – before, during and after, with Awareness, Insight, clarity of Direction and Empowerment ™ (AIDE), so that they can make decisions that are right for them.
I have personal experience with a tough divorce. I gained a lot of knowledge about the process before, during and after divorce. I landed on my feet. I want to show you how you can do the same. You can reach me at 561.228.1058 or email me at sujata@transitionaide.com