It starts with you and your own mental health

Sandra Miller, Personal Real Estate Corporation, Senior Vice President of Sales at Sotheby’s International, and Partner of DuMoulin-Miller Real Estate is providing generous support to this year’s Healthy Women, Healthy Companies event as a presenting partner and panelist. 

Sandra started her career young — assertive, ambitious, full of hope. Then life happened and she had to prioritize and refocus, torn between family needs and the necessity to work. On her track to success, she’s learned to follow her intuition, build relationships based on integrity and trust, and to be true to herself. 

Christie Buono, Director of Marketing + Community Partnerships at the Foundation, talked to Sandra about mental health, balancing work + family, and the importance of women’s health for businesses. 

Christie: How do you feel your values align with the BCWHF’s mission? 

Sandra: As a mother of two daughters, as a sister and as a daughter myself, I recognize the perseverance and mental health of women of all ages.  Raising my daughters has opened my world up to the importance of mindfulness, self-care, balance, and struggles in theirs and my own mental health obstacles.  

C: Why does women’s health matter to you? 

S: I believe that women are very strong and, in my experience, tend to take on a lot more by balancing home and work life. It’s very hard to be everything to everyone, and balls tend to get dropped. You have to figure out what balls are more important than the others to keep in the air. This starts with you and your own mental health because if you aren’t well, everything around you will be affected.

C: Do you have a personal story you’d feel comfortable sharing that inspired you to support women’s health? 

S: My daughter was diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder this past year. The struggles she goes through on a daily basis is taxing to her self-esteem, anxiety, and feeds her depression.  My other daughter has struggled with anxiety and depression through the years, especially when she went to university back east. All of this took a toll on our family. When we came to a breaking point, I questioned my parenting and where I failed.  My own mental health was in a tailspin as a result.  

Since March of 2020, all three  of us have been on a journey of recovery and coping.  My daughter with BPD has been thriving  in a Dialectical Behavioural Therapy program while me and my other daughter have been actively involved in personal coaching therapy. We are a family unit that cares, communicates, and sees a bright future together.

C: In your opinion, why is it so important for companies like yours to invest in women’s health? 

S: I believe it’s important for companies like us to invest in women’s health because we are in the community on a daily basis and we see the struggles that men and women experience while balancing their lives. Like I’ve said before, women often take on a leadership role in both business and their homes making their health essential to all of us. 

C: What are you hoping the Foundation achieves through your generous contribution? 

S: I hope we can help build a platform for women to feel comfortable and vulnerable enough to ask for help along the way. Everyone needs to have a hand to hold.

C: Is there anything you have learned during the pandemic that you hope to integrate into your work or personal life post-COVID-19? 

S: COVID-19 has made us realize the importance of being healthy, the importance of asking for help when you need it, and making everyone around you feel comfortable enough to talk about what they need.

C: Why are you excited to join the Healthy Women, Healthy Companies conversation as a panelist? 

S: I’m extremely honoured to be a panelist and I’m excited to share my experiences (my triumphs and fails) and pass them on to other women in the workplace.

C: From your perspective, how do you feel that the health of women impacts the health + success of their companies?

S:  I believe women’s health is the catapult of success for many companies. Having a balanced and healthy mental life allows our perspective to be much more insightful.

Healthy Women, Healthy Companies, presented by the DuMoulin-Miller Group of Sotheby’s International Realty Canada, is a virtual event focused on women’s health in today’s workplace. It takes place on March 8, International Women’s Day from 7-8:30 pm. 

Learn more and purchase tickets at bcwomensfoundation.crowdchange.ca/1440

You can also learn more about Sandra and Dumoullin-Miller Real Estate at dumoulin-miller.com/