“You’re a Badass!”

That’s what one of my patients recently said to me.  “Dr. Hoppe, you’re a badass!”. 

At first, I was taken aback. What does she mean by this?  Isn’t “badass” a “bad” thing?  Actually, what I soon learned, after checking with Miriam Webster, 2021 version,  is that this term can be interpreted as negative or offensive ( someone who is likely to cause trouble)  AND can also be used in a complimentary term- someone who is skillful and impressive .

“How am I badass?”, I asked her.  She said, “Well, you survived breast cancer, built a thriving Gyn practice, helped care for your Mom suffering from dementia over the past 6 years and created the Amazing over 40 site/community to list a few…”.  After listening to her, I said, “Yes, I guess you’re right… I am a badass!”

Then today, another patient said to me, “Dr. Hoppe, you’re badass!” And now I really knew that I needed to write about this.  What message was the universe trying to send me?  I again went to Miriam Webster, and learned that badass can be both a noun and an adjective.  Wow, how our language has changed.

Back to being a badass… I realized that yes, I have stepped out of my comfort zone many times because life has thrown me a few curveballs and I’ve responded in a positive way.  Yes, I am a survivor and mentor for women, both locally, across the country and internationally to be amazing in all of their unique ways.  Yes, I am and deserve to be a badass. 

Maybe, we all are “badass” in some way or another - some being more blatantly badass than others, forging paths for women to become all that they can and have the right to be.  I believe we are all trying to find our true selves, realizing that life is NOW.  The time is NOW to start finding your own badass. NOW is the time to do the things you want to do – travel to foreign places, have fun with friends, find new adventures and discover novel, and sometimes, scary NEW things.  Yes, this involves getting out of our comfort zone and having the courage to step into this new version of ourselves – breaking the barriers/boundaries that are holding us back from shining our light and passion.

A word of caution - Some of your friends and family may not like this new “version” of you. They do NOT want you to shine and show off your badass self – and this can be difficult. Ultimately though, how you decide to live your life from this point on is up to you. Do you listen and follow the advice from others that does NOT resonate with you?  Or do you spread your wings and finally live the authentic life you WANT and DESERVE?

So how will you find your “badass”?   What things will you do to show you’re badass? Click HERE to share your comments on my latest Instagram post.

Remember - Life is not a dress rehearsal – NOW is the time to BE AMAZING!

In health and happiness,

Dr. Diana