Finding your limit(s) is a good thing.

RFR No. 10 w/ Nadia Moore - first-gen entertainment & sports attorney

“I think I’m going to go back on sertraline even though it makes me feel like a failure.”

I texted that to my Dad a few weeks ago after breaking down for the twentieth time that week. Every task felt insurmountable. It was as if there was an invisible wall between me and everything around me. Everything just felt so far and so out of reach. It was like an invisible weight was weighing on each limb and on my heart.

The most frustrating thing about it was that life was starting to look up. What I thought was going to be months-and-months of job-searching quickly turned into working for someone I’ve admired for 3 years now. I have a bed to sleep in (and I live at home which is a big privilege and blessing while I prioritize my student loan payments). I have clothes, a loving family, and food in the fridge.

What is wrong with me? Why can’t I just be happy?

This is a hurdle I’ve faced since Middle School , if I’m being honest. It wasn’t until my early twenties that I started going to therapy and even then it’s off-and-on. But I share this because, as of late, every person I’ve talked to is going through *something.*

I’ve yet to meet one person who has their sh*t together. I’ve never met someone who wasn’t insecure or unsure about something in their life.

So when I read Nadia’s touching story, I was once again reminded that: you never know what weight people are carrying in their minds and hearts. Nadia and I both went to Elon together. She was someone that immediately exuded ‘resilient’ to me just in the way she carried herself and was involved at school.

Which is why I’m extremely grateful for Nadia sharing a part of her story and why I’m sharing a part of my own. Too many of us walk around thinking we’re alone. That we’re the only ones feeling like we’re treading water in stormy seas.

We’re not.

My Dad walked into my room after I sent that text and made a couple of things very clear to me:

(1) I’m not a failure for getting help.

(2) I’m not a failure for getting the type of help I need.

My brain just so happens to be a little slow on the whole transmitting-certain-neurons thing but that’s only a negative if I let it be. So I’m passing along my Dad’s message and Nadia’s story along to whoever needs it.

Because I definitely did (and still do).

Rapid Fire Resilience Interview No. 10 - Nadia Moore

Can you share a moment in your life where you became a more resilient person - if not immediately in that moment, then in hindsight?

The simple answer is law school. I burned myself out and bottled all my struggles inside. My whole life, I’ve been a go-getter and prided myself on not “letting stress get to me.”  I never accepted "no" for an answer and made sure I was always prepared, whether in school or athletics.

I never wanted anyone to think I was less than capable, I attribute much of this to my childhood.

I grew up as an only child in a single-parent household, which came with its own challenges. I was also the first grandchild, the first niece, and the first in many other ways, so you can imagine the high standards I was held to.

Things getting hard was not really an excuse.

My mom instilled in me that life  is just going to be tough sometimes, and it will knock you down. And while you can’t always control what happens, you can control your mindset. In other words, I had to put on my big-girl-boots and figure it out—and for most of my life, I did just that…until law school.

After my first and second semester, I received an email informing me that I was on academic probation and at risk of failing out. For the first time in my life, I didn’t know what to do—other than cry. Up until that point, I had done everything I could think of: studying endlessly, attending office hours, taking practice tests, and more.

Yet, I still found myself in that difficult position. The one thing I hadn’t done was reach out for help. Admitting that law school was becoming too hard felt like admitting that I wasn’t good enough. So I kept my struggles bottled up, trying to handle everything on my own.

Then, one of my professors reached out, concerned about my academic well-being, and asked me a simple question: "What’s going on?" It was a question no one had asked me before. In that moment, I broke down and shared everything I had been feeling. That conversation made me realize that I didn’t have to figure everything out on my own. I also recognized how much I was burning myself out by trying to be perfect and act like I had everything under control. 

After speaking with my professor, my entire academic trajectory changed. That was three years ago. Now, I’m sitting in an office in Atlanta, working my dream job as an attorney.

Based on the story you shared previously, what was it specifically about that experience that cultivated resilience?

I believe that part of being resilient is knowing when to ask for help and when to lean on others. I was so afraid of being judged or seen as “less than” that I struggled alone for far too long. Resilience isn’t about perfection—it’s about adaptability and recognizing your limits.

What would you advise to someone who is facing a similar situation?

Don’t try to face everything alone. Seeking help does not make you weak, it is actually a sign of strength and self-awareness. Also, for any students reading this, grades are not everything. Please don’t become so fixated on them that you lose sight of yourself or jeopardize your mental health.

“Resilience isn’t about perfection—it’s about adaptability and recognizing your limits.”

Nadia Moore is a first-generation attorney currently based in Atlanta, Georgia. She specializes in Sports and Entertainment Law at Carter Woodard, LLC. Outside of work, she labels herself as a “workout girly” and is a proud dog mom to her four-year-old Husky, Oakley.

Resilience Takeaway:

Is there a limit you’ve been hitting lately? Maybe it’s mental, emotional, physical, or spiritual? Maybe it has to do with your environment?

How can you ask for help? What do you need to get past that limit?