• Mel Hoeppner left her job last year after trying to juggle work and two new health conditions. • After taking time to reflect, she decided to invest in herself and started her own health brand. • Hoeppner said she's found inner happiness that she thinks is hard to achieve in a corporate setting.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Mel Hoeppner, a 40-year-old CEO and founder of The Healing Habit, based in Tennessee. The following has been edited for length and clarity.

Last year, building my career and staying focused on my profession mattered the most to me. I didn't have time for really anything else.

I'm used to powering through things. I'm a military spouse and I'm raising kids, but over the course of several months, I noticed my health was declining in ways t

See Full Page