My Story
Hi! I’m Lori.
I escaped a mental institution at seventeen, built a multi-million-dollar tech company, and transformed 100,000 lives in Africa—yet I was still abandoning myself every day until I discovered the magic of D.R.E.A.M.
Survival. My ultra-religious mother couldn’t force her rebellious, strong-willed daughter to “be good.” By the time I was thirteen, she believed the devil possessed me. My overwhelmed dad, desperate for peace, eventually committed me to a mental hospital. I was sixteen. Pills of various colors, shapes, and sizes soon sank me into a medicated fog. But when the girl next door had shock treatment and was threatened with a lobotomy, sheer terror sharpened my focus. I realized I needed to pretend swallowing the pills and figure out how to escape. First lesson: I have choice.
Success Without Satisfaction. I was numb for the next thirty years, hiding my loneliness and feelings of being unacceptable by working crazy hours and trying to be supermom for my three kids. Desperate to prove my worth, I let my success as a tech entrepreneur define me. My second husband lectured that I owed him—it was time to sell the business and retire. He wanted to “live the good life!” Surprise, when the company sold, my self-worth disappeared along with my purpose.
The Search. I spent years traveling, seeking knowledge, and looking for answers. I wanted to learn to feel, to define my own “supposed-tos,” to decide for myself what I believed to be true, to understand how it felt to be part of different cultures—African, Asian, or Argentinian—and, ultimately, find a sense of fulfillment and purpose. Then, on a very hot day in the middle of the Sahara desert, a little girl with flies on her face begged for my water bottle—she just wanted a chance to live. What if I could give children born into deep poverty the chance for a healthy life? Would that give me purpose?
The Shift. The challenge to create a lasting positive impact within a culture rooted in ancient sanctions, social norms, and taboos captured my mind and heart. I founded an international charity, moved to Ethiopia, assembled a talented team of locals, and began implementing water, health, education, and empowerment projects with some of the most marginalized tribes in Africa. Over 100,000 lives were transformed. Ten years later, when civil war compelled me to leave, I departed with something invaluable—my sense of self-worth. What changed?
The Harvest. Those countless nights in Ethiopia when electricity went out—my only light was three flickering candles—gave me space to reflect on that desert girl, the challenges my kids face, and the incredible resilience I see every day. I realized that my own struggles were the source of my superpowers. Because of them, I am resilient, curious, and wise. Now, my purpose is to help others find peace—and so, I created D.R.E.A.M.
Your Turn. Let me help you turn your struggles into your superpowers. Find wisdom in your challenges—trauma, poor choices, fears of failing or not being enough, damaging myths and “supposed-tos.” D.R.E.A.M. works. I know—I still use it every day.
Download your free D.R.E.A.M. guide: no strings attached—just a gift from one wise woman to another.
Sticky Thoughts
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“Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.”
Anaïs Nin
What People Say About Lori
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