The Wellness Spotlight series highlights military spouses and their real world health and wellness journeys in a Facebook live series. Below is an excerpt of Diana’s feature.

TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOUR JOURNEY AS A MILITARY SPOUSE?

I met my husband when I was 5 years old. Our dads are business partners, so it was an early introduction. We started dating when I was in college and by then I was smitten. My dad was in the military right after medical school, so I had spent some time at Fort Sam Houston as a small child! Dating my soon to be husband, though, was very different than that. I lived in Chicago, Nashville, and Atlanta before being married so moving to small towns in NY, Arizona, and Louisiana was a big adjustment. Luckily, I was able to keep my job from Atlanta for many years. Unfortunately, my employer decided I needed to move back in order to keep working so that is where WISE Advise + Assist Team was created. Military spouses have so much experience and so much to give to an employer. It doesn’t seem fair that we have to give up our careers to be a military spouse if we don’t want to. Being able to work at WISE and change the scope of military spouse employment has been a huge blessing for me. 

HAVE YOU EXPERIENCED ANY HIGHS OR LOWS AS A MILITARY SPOUSE?

I was my highest weight I had ever been right after having my son. I was all over the place, and my husband had to deploy 3 weeks after he was born. That was also the point where I was asked to move back to Atlanta for my corporate job. The life I had created seemed as though it was crumbling down around me.

My highest moment is now! About a month ago, I lost all the baby weight and also ran a 10k! I had run a half marathon while pregnant, but my running had suffered. I feel as though my career has taken off in a new way with WISE, and now things can only get better!

WHAT IS ONE PERSONAL HABIT THAT CONTRIBUTES TO YOUR SUCCESS?

I love my miracle mornings. I get up before the day starts, use my spin bike, do my devotional and start my day right. I can’t do it everyday, but incorporating this 80% of the time makes me 150% more productive when I start my day in this manner.

FAVORITE FORM OF SELF-CARE?

I strive for self care. A lot of times as military spouses we forget about it! The way I remember is I have my pamper budget. My husband and I add a line item in our spin plan to make sure that I can get a pedicure or massage once a month!

WHAT IS A HEALTH AND WELLNESS RESOURCE YOU WOULD SHARE WITH THE COMMUNITY?

The Simplified Planner! It's not necessarily health and wellness, but works on balance which is important in any wellness journey! Scheduling your day allows the little hiccups not to derail you from just anything! It also makes you take your days back. As a wife, mom and small business owner, that is important for me because things can quickly go out of control.

I, also, love the Aaptiv App. It is like having a trainer in your ear! I mainly use it when I am on the Spin bike in the morning, but you can use it for all sorts of workouts. It's a great way to get in an efficient workout without paying for the cost of a personal trainer.

IF YOU COULD RECOMMEND ONE BOOK TO MILITARY SPOUSES, WHAT WOULD IT BE AND WHY?

Grace Not Perfection by Emily Ley is a great book. As women we need to give ourselves grace in the day to day. We don’t need to be perfect, just trying to do our best.

(Purchases using the links above will help InDependent cover administrative costs for our programs at no extra cost to you!)

ABOUT DIANA JAQUITH

Diana is from Venice, a sleepy old town in Florida. She grew up playing basketball and tennis, her two favorite sports. If she had been allowed to play football, she would have! Diana graduated from Vanderbilt University with her engineering degree and has almost a decade of experience in the digital marketing and product management fields. She is currently the Executive Director at WISE Advise + Assist Team, helping businesses grow by outsourcing to military spouses. When not doing that, Diana works on developing Lime Dot Shop, an online boutique for the woman on the go. It features all made in the USA items, as well as military spouse and veteran owned vendors. At her current duty station, she is also an InDependent Community Ambassador and an FRG leader.

CONNECT WITH DIANA

Instagram: @wiseadviseteam | Facebook: WISE Advise + Assist Team | Web: www.wiseadviseteam.com | Email: diana@wiseadviseteam.com | Twitter: @WISEadviseteam