Resilience Spotlight: Lucy Werner
The author of the Hype Yourself newsletter on navigating uncertainty in the midst of a family crisis
I have been a loyal subscriber of
’s newsletter, Hype Yourself, for more than a year.After a decade-plus managing public relations for some of the world’s largest brands, Lucy’s mission today is to teach solopreneurs the skills necessary to promote their work and make a difference in the world.
As someone who struggles with self-promotion (it’s about as enjoyable as eating lima beans or spending a day at the DMV), I get so much from Lucy’s newsletter every week. She makes a nerve-wracking process a little less painful, which I appreciate. (So consider this my highest recommendation.)
Lucy’s journey has been nontraditional; she’s pivoted several times in her career and has never shied away from taking big risks. We’ll briefly touch on this in our interview.
But the main reason I wanted to interview Lucy is due to a conversation we had a few months back over Zoom. After I introduced myself and shared my rare disease journey, Lucy told me about her five-year-old son, who was born with four rare congenital heart defects. [I’ve omitted his name per request.]
It’s this story I’m honored to share with you today.
Today, Lucy lives in France with her husband, Hadrien, and three children.
Below is our email Q&A.
CA: Tell us a little bit about your career thus far and your work with Hype Yourself. What made you decide to start helping small business owners?
LW: When I was 17, I secured a work experience placement for a PR agency and then spent most of my 20s and 30s working for some of London’s top creative agencies.
By 2014, however, I found myself working for huge global brands that I just didn’t care for. At the same time, a lot of my entrepreneurial friends were beginning to create amazing new companies but didn’t have the budget for a huge PR agency, so I set out to create an agency structure for them.
That led me to where I am today, helping small business owners through my work at Hype Yourself.
CA: Hype Yourself’s mission is to give small business owners and entrepreneurs the skills necessary to promote themselves. This includes building confidence.
What piece of advice would you give to someone who struggles with their confidence?
LW: You don’t have to be confident to share your story! I will be the first person to hold my hand up and say I’m not the most confident. Self-promotion is a muscle.
It’s also worth remembering that what isn’t interesting to you is fascinating to us.
That, and you have to learn to repeat yourself. A lot.
CA: You've adapted and pivoted several times in your career, from working at a corporate PR agency, to running your own agency, to having freelance PR clients, to now running the Hype Yourself community. And now you live in France!
How have you been able to thrive amidst change? What has been the hardest part of this nontraditional career path?
LW: There is always the uncertainty of, “Is this actually going to work out?” But the easy decisions keep us safe and small. It is much harder to take a bold decision into the unknown, but it almost always pays dividends. I’ve learned to swing big; even if I miss, I can use these lessons to help others.
CA: I want to spend our remaining time talking about a part of your journey that you haven’t shared too often.
Your son was born in 2019 with four rare congenital heart defects. Can you tell us about your experience in those early months of his life, from learning the news to how you managed the fear and uncertainty of the situation?
LW: My reaction was very pragmatic. I wanted to know all the information. I had already nearly fainted visiting him in the ICU before the diagnosis, so I immediately went and ate something.
I then found out we were being transferred to a hospital called the Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children in London, so I phoned a friend whose child also had a long stay there and sought advice.
He sent me an email called “Taking Control” that was the best gift I needed at that time. It covered everything — parking, WiFi, bringing an extra pillow for yourself, expectations of friends and family, etc.
During this time, I went through a lot of emotions and was exhausted. I often chose to sleep over seeing friends. I also didn’t let anyone come and visit us because I didn’t want him to get an infection.
When I look back, I realize I didn’t fully show anyone the struggle I was going through. I was still posting on social media because I felt like that was how I would make income, as it was my shop window. When I look back at my camera roll now, there are photos of me sad with him in the hospital right next to slickly-designed carousel posts.
But I think having the work was a good distraction that pulled me through. I think the trick now is to make sure I’ve properly dealt with all the emotions.
CA: How were you and your husband able to navigate that terrifying time? How did the two of you help each other through it? Were there any external sources of support that helped you cope?
LW: We work really well together in a crisis. We’re almost like a see-saw — when one of us is up, the other one can be down. The hospital provided psychological support, which was important to help us navigate together.
Sadly, my Mum had a stroke a week before my son was born and had been caring for my Dad with memory issues. So it was a lot, as I was also mentally caring for them both at the same time.
It was a really lonely experience, but I think that would have been the case whether I was surrounded by people or not. Often, people paper over what is happening with phrases like “It’s all going to be fine,” which I used to find difficult.
My husband was also a congenital heart defect baby. His surgeon pioneered the move with him — it’s now known as the LeCompte maneuver, and my son’s surgeon actually trained under my husband’s surgeon. Having my husband there as a mini “heart celebrity” case study gave me hope we would make it through.
CA: What do you credit with preserving your mental health and well-being during this time?
LW: It was really basic things like going to bed early, eating well, and walking every day. I was so focused on being able to still make breast milk, which forced me to nourish myself. And I chose accommodations that were a ten-minute walk away to force me to get my body moving.
There is also a children’s park nearby that I used to go to and sit in.
Weirdly, I stopped listening to music (which I usually do every day) as I didn’t want to attach any musical memories to the situation. I was scared that if the worst did happen, I didn’t want any songs to remind me of the experience later.
As I mentioned earlier, I probably hid too well in plain sight with work posts. These days, I try to be a lot more honest about my struggles.
CA: How did that experience change you, personally and professionally?
LW: I am not the same person from that experience, and I have absolutely no doubt I would not be living the life I am now in France if that year hadn’t happened to me.
I try not to take life for granted as much. I live as hard as I can rather than work as hard as I can!
CA: What advice would you give to parents facing a similar ordeal?
LW: Gosh. You know, one thing I’ve learned in life is that one-size-fits-all advice fits no one. The way I handle a situation is not going to be the same as another person.
But I think overall, try to take one day at a time and don’t think too far ahead. Try as hard as you can to articulate what you need and tell people what is happening.
For me personally, I was supported a lot by the small business community with letters, cards, food aid, and love. It carried me through, so I’m glad I shared what I did. The outpouring was really surprising and kept my spirits lifted.
CA: How is your son doing today?
LW: Well, he is a bit of a miracle. His heart surgery was so rare that it was written up in the European Heart Journal. His next surgery was slated for when he was 2-3 years old, but it’s still holding well at 5 1/2!
He will likely need further surgery to support the valves as he gets older; we have check-ups every six months. The uncertainty of when that will be is hard, but day in/day out, you wouldn’t know it.
Lucy and her family are raising money for the Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity. If you would like to contribute to the fundraiser, you can do so here.
This was an extraordinary interview! Thanks for sharing it with us, Chris and Lucy.
WOW! This was jaw-dropping and heartwarming. Thank you for sharing with us. 💗