Hello, I'm Adiemus!
And this is my story...
Hello, I'm Adiemus!
And this is my story…
The Short
The Long
“I’m sorry, there is no cure for your medical condition. But the good news is…
you can manage the symptoms with daily medications. You will also need to adhere to strict diets (mainly streamed food and no coffee) to ensure your symptoms do not flare-up”.
At the age of 28, the medical specialist gave me the above instructions to live my life.
To rewind the timeline, for six months, I was in and out of hospitals due to severe nausea and vomiting, palpitations, hyperventilation, chest pain and insomnia.
The doctors ran many tests to find out what’s wrong with me, and they (sort of) eventually did.
Hi, my name is Adiemus…
and I am the founder of Strengths Optimizer. I am also a Gallup Certified Strengths Coach, and a registered counsellor with the Australian Counselling Association. I am passionate about enabling people and organisations to thrive using evidence-based and innovative strategies from strengths-based psychology and wellbeing science (#Strengths – Includer, Relator & Maximizer).
For the last 20 years, I have worked in university, hospital, non-profit organisation, and private sectors as a strengths coach, mental health clinician and a trainer. I have the privilege to help individuals and organisations elevate their performance, achieve their goals, and find meaning and purpose in their work.
I have post-graduate training in counselling, psychology, theology and thanatology (#Strength – Learner). You must be wondering, what is thanatology?
Thanatology is the scientific study of death and dying. In my past life, I counselled and supported patients with a terminal illness, bereaved individuals, families, and people affected by grieve, loss and trauma.
As a thanatologist, I learned very quickly both the brevity and priority of life. As cliché as it sounds, when we are at the death bed, we are often confronted with existential questions such as “Who am I? What legacy am I leaving? What is the meaning and purpose of my life?” etc.
Learning about my medical condition had challenged my sense of existence and meaning. As I began to process the doctor’s diagnosis, I felt shocked, disbelief, angry and sad. As days and weeks went by, my confidence started to crack, fear and self-doubt began to creep into my mind.
Suddenly, the challenges and struggles that I experienced became personal.
I developed symptoms of depression and anxiety, and I suffered from panic attacks and insomnia.
At one point, I also battled with suicidal ideation.
Then I realised I had two choices. One, to fight this battle by myself, or two, to fight this battle with God and people who love me. I know God loves me more than I can ever imagine, and I know I am created for a plan and a purpose (#Strengths – Belief & Connectedness).
I got down on my knee and prayed. I opened my vulnerabilities and sought help, and that was the turning point for a new beginning, followed by months of intentional and deliberate acts of making changes so that I could rise from the ashes (#Strengths – Discipline & Futuristic).
Thank you for taking the time to read my story.
I would love to connect and get to know you – your hopes and dreams, fears and frustrations, and how we can partner together to create the new beginning that you want.
