I am an art therapist and a yoga and reiki practitioner. My business is called Root to Crown Healing and Wellness, and I am a Black female solopreneur. I focus on helping our community heal from racial trauma, post-traumatic stress disorder, and grief.
My business really picked up during the pandemic, and especially after the increased rise in race-based stress. As a solopreneur, it’s really important to plan for our lives (trips, travel, holidays, etc.), but there are just some things that we can’t always plan for like emergencies.
As a self-employed person, getting secondary coverage for disability insurance or any insurance that would cover a leave of absence (e.g., maternity leave, illness) is not an option for me. It has proven to be impossible, as all insurers that I have reached out to have informed me that unless I was working for a business that offered it to all of their employees, I did not have the option for coverage as a self-employed person.
This has delayed me being able to start a family and left me in fear of getting sick or hurt, because there is no way that my business can run without me. I don’t have a backup person that can step in and hold space for others in our community because therapy doesn’t work that way.
In the past, I haven’t had the time for proper bereavement when I have lost family members. I haven’t been able to show up and care for my family and friends when they are sick or have babies, in the way that I would like to, because for me, there is no way that I can take time off as a therapist without sacrificing my business and income.
I feel so energized when connecting with Main Street Alliance and organizing “Paid Family and Medical Leave.” This option would give me the ability to start a family without fear that I would not be able to start my private practice back up like lots of therapists in our community end up doing.
It also would allow me to not fear getting sick or injured because I would know that I have access to something that can help support me while I am out.
I know that I am not the only business owner in this predicament. My story is one version of a similar story that so many solopreneurs and small business owners share. Passing “Paid Family and Medical Leave” makes a better Minnesota because it allows us all to take care of each other.
All my clients do better when I am doing better because our health ripples through the community. We all do better when we all do better, so I urge the legislature to pass the Paid Family and Medical Leave bill (SF2 and HF 2) for a more supported Minnesota.
To learn more about Minnesota’s Paid Family and Medical Leave efforts, visit the website paidleavemn.org. To get involved as a small business owner, go to bit.ly/SupportPaidFamilyLeaveMN
Cassie Sawyer is a solopreneur and small business owner of Root to Crown Healing and Wellness in Minneapolis.
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