Melissa Ghelarducci Hancock

Melissa Ghelarducci Hancock
United States
Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia
CDC Certified Divorce Coach®
CDC Certified Divorce Coach® CDC Divorce Transition and Recovery Coach® , Developmental Early Interventionist Birth to Three Early Intervention, Elementary & Early Childhood Teacher, BS
I Do. I Did. I'm Done! Divorce & Breakup Coaching
Languages Spoken
English
Special Offerings
Gift Certificates, Free Consultation
Phone Number
4127191821
E-mail Address
divorcecoachinabox@gmail.com
Website URL
https://www.divorcecoachmelissa.com
About my Practice

When you are faced with divorce… those words ring loud!

Divorce is not for the weak! No one may tell you that, but I will. We all hope the process goes smoothly and you get everything you deserve without losing who you are in the process. We all hope we can co-parent with the ex, and not have any problems going forward with it. But…let’s get real!

I can help inspire your path before, during, and after divorce so that you are empowered to take your family from surviving to thriving, one layer at a time.

SPECIALIZING IN FAMILIES OF:

FIRST RESPONDERS

MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS

HIGH PROFILE CASES

 SPECIAL NEEDS CHILDREN

 

I DO…

I thought when I got married it would be forever. My parents had been married for an eternity and divorce was not even in my family’s vocabulary. I watched my brothers’ marriages over the years and thought they were so happy…until they were not. Yet they still stayed married because they did not believe in divorce. They struggled and I watched the abuse over the years both verbally, mentally, and physically. I vowed I would never deal with that narcissistic behavior. I heard the excuses they made for each other. Fast forward to when I meet a local guy the old fashion way, in our local hangout. Tall, ginger, and seemed like my protector because he was a police officer. I felt safe. What could go wrong? We will save that for the book. LOL

I DID…

After 20 years of being together, supporting him throughout his police career, dealing with his shift work, sleeping odd hours while keeping the kids quiet, handling a child with ADHD and ODD, him being unfaithful after our second child, a major recovery from a broken pelvis due to a car accident, and a relationship that turned abusive…it was time to walk away.

I’M DONE!

Now the questions start in my head…Where do I start? Who do I turn to? Now what? Who to trust? How can I afford it? What will my family think? What will God think? Who will want me after this? What about the kids…the house… the dog? Does any of this sound familiar? Your friends and family chose sides even when you never thought they would. Your partners family either supports you both and helps anyway they can…or…they turn their backs on you. All the realities one must deal with. It cuts like a knife.

NOW WHAT?

I CAN HELP!

LET’S CHAT TODAY AND DON’T AGREE TO ANYTHING UNTIL WE TALK!

Services I Offer
Topics I Cover
•Co-parenting
•Extended & Blended family relationships
•Communication with ex
•Parenting Responsibilities
•Re-entry to workforce and change in career
•Self-esteem/confidence/identity
•Dating
•Fear of the unknown
•Moving from family home to new location
•Work/life harmony
•Health and Wellness
•Support networks and resources
•Childcare
Potential Clients

•Grandparents vying for custody of the grandchildren
•Parents of young children
•A parent with a special needs child
•Executives facing divorce and a heavy load at work
•Stay at home Moms facing divorce
•Professionals who gave up their career to raise children
•Fathers facing divorce
•People in recovery dealing with divorce
•Women over 50 divorcing after long stable marriages
•Men over 50 divorcing after long stable marriages
•Entrepreneurs balancing a new business and divorce
•Writers who are blocked by the process of divorce
•Women divorcing while facing health issues
•Women preparing for mediation
•Parents of Young Adults
•Divorcing as same sex couple

What My Clients Gain
•Save money on exorbitant attorney’s fees
•Streamline the divorce process
•Connect to a network of vetted professionals
•Introduce small, impactful practices of self-care
•Re-vision life after divorce with steps to get there
•Build calm, clear, confident communication
•Deflect stress, sleep better and feel energized
•Connect with others divorcing or going through a breakup who get it
•Learn to reframe maddening situations
•Return focus to their needs, desires and big dreams
•Stand in their own power and reclaim control
•Events to help empower, inspire and support you throughout the year
Certifications

CDC Certified Divorce Coach®
CDC Divorce Transition and Recovery Coach®

Certified Early Interventionist with Birth to Three Early Intervention

Professional Memberships

*PEEL Member, Pittsburgh, PA
*Southwest Regional Chamber of Commerce, Pittsburgh, PA

Background Experience
CDC Certified Divorce Coach®
CDC Divorce Transition and Recovery Coach , CDC Certified Divorce

•Developmental & Early Interventionist Therapist in Birth to Three Early Intervention

•Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education and Early Childhood

  • Social-Emotional Development Training in Children & Young Adults
  • Autism Training
  • Behavioral Interventionist
  • Abuse & Domestic Violence Training
  • Developmental Milestones
  • Prematurity Training & Interventionist
  • Special Needs & Sensory Interventionist
  • Co-Parenting Training

 

Coach Specialties
Conflict Communication, Divorce Process, Divorce Transition-Recovery, Parenting/Co-Parenting, Domestic Violence Resources
Testimonials

“After a 5 year relationship, with my ex-fiance one afternoon to my shock and surprise she informed me that she was breaking up with me. I took this break-up extremely hard, falling into a depression that lasted months. When I met Melissa I had reached the lowest depths of despair. Melissa introduced me to the benefits of yoga, therapy, and made me realize I have gone untreated with anxiety and bi-polar disorder my whole life. She helped me get back on track and introduced me to others who have helped as well.”

“I was a young single mother, going through a divorce. It was truly the lowest point of my life. I was defeated and had no direction to “fix things”. Melissa was my emotional crutch. I was able to express my feelings and fears, all while knowing that I wasn’t being judged. She was able to not only listen but offer advice-even if it was hard to hear. She was also my map, a “life map”. She showed me a way to improve my situation.”

“Melissa is one of the most inspiring women I know, and I have referred her to others I know who are going through a similar experience. She has a giving, kind spirit, and brings the best qualities out of those around her.”

“My ex has very toxic traits and bothers me with text and phone calls and Melissa has guided me and pointed out things I wasn’t able to recognize with what he was doing and saying. She was able to help me find closure by understanding these things. She has also helped me with moving forward and working on myself for now and in the future not make the same mistakes. I highly recommend her!”

“I was going through a really bad break up recently, Melissa helped me through it all! She was able to guide me through the ups and downs and the challenges I was facing!”

“For me, it was the encouragement from Melissa to go back and finish my education so that I would be able to support myself and my daughter. That may sound simple but at the time I was content to sit and wallow in self-pity, so her encouragement may have required a little more fire than just the average advice. To have that someone to call for whatever reason, is crucial. The emotional toll was very overwhelming at times. Just to know I had someone in my corner, willing to listen to me babble, meant everything.”

Book a Complimentary Session

Why Do I Need a Divorce & Breakup Coach?

You wake up at 2:00 AM, feeling overwhelmed and panicked by the uncertainty of your future.
Questions and worries run through your mind. “What if I don’t want this divorce or breakup?” “Will I lose my kids?” “How will I survive?” “How do I tell my partner our relationship is over?” “How do I tell my parents?” “How do I tell my kids?” “Is this a mistake?” “Will this ruin my kids’ lives?” “Am I going to have to sell the house?” “Do I have to share my retirement savings?” “Do I need to lawyer up?” “I can’t afford it!” And on and on.
So, like many people, you start Googling in the middle of the night.
Somewhere in your Googling, something pops up about “Divorce & Breakup Coaching.” Like almost everything else related to divorce, this is a new term for you. You wonder, “How can a Divorce Coach help me? How do I know if I need one? How do I find one? What is a Divorce & Breakup Coach, anyway?”

WHAT CAN I DO AS YOUR COACH?

A Certified Divorce Coach is a trained professional who works with you and shepherds you through your breakup. Divorce & Breakup Coaches have unique expertise in divorce, co-parenting, parent planning, child development, the impact of divorce on children, and all other issues related to divorce. Divorce Coaching is not therapy. I specialize in Divorce Coaching and Breakup Coaching and have I experienced a very difficult divorce myself. Going through a breakup is the same as a divorce most of the time. You go through the same emotions and feelings. Especially when kids are involved.
How do you know if you need one?
You are overwhelmed. For most people, the prospect of a divorce is an overwhelming life crisis. You need to make big decisions at a time when you are emotionally swamped.
The demands and decisions are confusing. You are exhausted just getting through each day. Sometimes you feel like you have lost yourself in a fog and lost your sense of direction. You don’t know what steps you need to take, how you can figure it all out, how long it will take. Just thinking about it makes you want to crawl under the covers. If this sounds familiar, then working with me can help.
Why hire me as a Coach?
Together we can help you understand one of the most important decisions you will have to make. You will need to decide which of the divorce process options available to you will work best for your family: a do-it-yourself divorce, mediation, collaborative divorce, or litigation. The process you choose will dramatically affect every next step.
We will walk the path together, through the legal process you have chosen, to provide support and guidance when needed. Often each partner has their own Coach to “have their back.”
You may be thinking about nesting or birdnesting for a time before your divorce is finalized. If so, I can help you and your spouse develop a nesting plan. Nesting is an arrangement where the children stay in the home, with their same routines, while you and your spouse take turns being “on duty” with a pre-agreed-upon schedule.
One of the first and most painful things you will have to do is talk to your children about the upcoming changes in your family. I will help you (and often your spouse) structure and plan for this, telling your children what they need to know, without blame. We can role- play and predict (based on research) how children might react, depending on their age and development. I will help you respond to their questions and concerns in age-appropriate ways.
I will help you build or strengthen skills to cope with your emotions, especially at meetings with professionals and your spouse. I can attend these meetings to help manage the pace and tenor of the meeting, calling breaks when necessary, and helping all of the professionals (and often your spouse) understand your perspective. In addition, I can help you develop self-care practices to help you feel more grounded and able to cope.
We will come up with a plan to help you begin to envision your life post-divorce, as a single parent and perhaps going back to work. We will help you set some goals and identify activities and interests. This vision helps you plan and may influence your divorce negotiations. For example, if you need re-training to enter the workforce, this can be discussed as part of your divorce settlement.
I will help you develop skills for the negotiations, which usually come after the information-gathering stage. You will discover what is important to you in the final resolution. Identifying what matters most to you and where you can compromise is one of the challenges.
I will help you understand and think through the many decisions you will be asked to make. You will feel brave, confident, and articulate in expressing what matters to you without being hijacked by emotions. This makes the process more efficient and cost-effective!
We will develop a comprehensive parenting plan for your children. The plan is tailored to the needs of your family, so every parenting plan is different. The plan includes a time-sharing schedule, but much more than that.
With my background and education in child development, special needs, sensory processing, autism and other areas, we can try to predict typical issues that could cause conflict later. A well-developed parenting plan will help everyone adjust to the changes in the family as you transition to single-parenting. Best of all, the plan will reduce post-divorce stress and conflict.
We can help you build a new kind of parenting partnership relationship with your spouse.
A good co-parenting relationship may allow you to celebrate important family events and holidays together.
This usually means developing new communication skills and ways to minimize conflicts. The methods you used in your marriage probably didn’t work, and a good post-divorce relationship is important for your (and your children’s) adjustment, recovery, and moving on. I can work with both of you, or with one of you, to establish good communication, boundaries, and strategies for dealing with issues that inevitably arise.

Use the form below to request your complimentary session.