Current print subscribers can create a free account by clicking here
Otherwise, follow the link below to join.
To Our Valued Readers –
Visitors to our website will be limited to five stories per month unless they opt to subscribe. The five stories do not include our exclusive content written by our journalists.
For $6.99, less than 20 cents a day, digital subscribers will receive unlimited access to YourValley.net, including exclusive content from our newsroom and access to our Daily Independent e-edition.
Our commitment to balanced, fair reporting and local coverage provides insight and perspective not found anywhere else.
Your financial commitment will help to preserve the kind of honest journalism produced by our reporters and editors. We trust you agree that independent journalism is an essential component of our democracy. Please click here to subscribe.
Need to set up your free e-Newspaper all-access account? click here.
Non-subscribers
Click here to see your options for becoming a subscriber.
Register to comment
Click here create a free account for posting comments.
Note that free accounts do not include access to premium content on this site.
I am anchor
Meet Your Neighbor
Queen Creek resident copes with PTSD through weightlifting
Posted
I feel honored being able to help others find a healthy outlet to cope with their struggles and manage their overall health.”
Emily Boergadine, weightlifter
Emily Boergadine moved back to Queen Creek to be near family and to provide her kids with a healthy lifestyle.
Boergadine is an example of the healthy lifestyle. She turned to weightlifting to help her cope with PTSD that stems from a childhood trauma.
She’s become so adept at weightlifting that she is in serious contention to be the next Ms. Health and Fitness, which would net her the cover of Muscle and Fitness HERS magazine.
“Only 1% of everyone that originally entered (the contest) is left to compete,” Boergadine said. “If I win, I'll be featured on the cover of Muscle and Fitness HERS magazine, along with winning $20,000 in prize money. I'll be able to use the title as a platform to raise awareness about PTSD, which is something I've had since childhood.”
When and why, I moved here: My husband and I moved to Queen Creek to be close to my Grandpa Schnepf, siblings and cousins. I want to raise my children with family nearby, so they can make happy childhood memories with family.
What I like most about living here: Queen Creek is a special place for me. I have many cherished memories from my childhood. I love how close Queen Creek is to nature, the hometown feel, authentic character and friendly atmosphere it has.
What I do: I am currently taking a break from working. I am a stay-at-home mom in the meantime. I am focused on my family’s and my own health. I go to Queen Creek’s local Mountainside Fitness daily. I am trying to find ways to raise awareness about PTSD and child abuse. I have entered into a national contest to be the next Ms. Health and Fitness for Muscle and Fitness HERS magazine. If I win, I’ll get to use that title as a platform to aid me in my cause.
What I like most about what I do: I am grateful that I have been able to manage my PTSD with a healthy lifestyle. I am proud to be an example to my children, friends and family in overcoming adversity. I feel honored being able to help others find a healthy outlet to cope with their struggles and manage their overall health.
Changes I'd like to see in this area: Queen Creek is growing rapidly and needs more parks and recreational options for families to spend healthy quality time together.
Favorite community cause & why: I am grateful for the nonprofit organization Bloom 365. Their main objective is to uproot abuse. They educate teens and adults about unhealthy relationships. They are able to intervene early, reducing the risk of continued harm and advocate for young victims of abuse. As a child who experienced sexual abuse from my neighbors, I wish I had something like this in my life to help me learn how to cope and help heal sooner.
My interests and hobbies: Nutrition is an important interest of mine. I love learning how food and supplements positively affect the human body. I hope to go back to school one day to get my degree in nutrition, so that I can help others live a healthier and happier life. If I win Ms. Health and Fitness, I’ll be using the prize money for tuition. Welding has been one of my favorite hobbies since high school. It’s been a healthy channel for my PTSD. Baking with my son is another hobby of mine. We give our baked goods to friends, neighbors, family and teachers at the local gym we go to. It creates an opportunity to teach my son about kindness and service to others.
The trait(s) I admire in others: Kindness and compassion to others are important to me. You never know what someone else has gone through or is going through in life.
People who inspired me (and how): Steve Harvey and Dana Linn Bailey are two people I admire and look up to. Steve Harvey has a wonderful outlook on life. He is kind, humorous, positive and motivational. He did not come from money and is a good example of what hard work, determination and perseverance can accomplish. Dana Linn Bailey is someone I look up to because as a body builder she won the first Ms. Olympia for women’s physique and did it naturally. She is a huge advocate for self-confidence, something I used to struggle with. Her outlook on health as a whole, not just physically but also mentally and emotionally, resonates deeply with me. Being healthy mentally and emotionally is important to me.
My guiding philosophy: Life is like a roller coaster. You have your highs and lows, hard times and good times. I can choose to let the hard times drag me down or use them to strengthen me. I could choose to be angry about the hardships in my life but that doesn’t change what happened to me. Or I can choose to help make a difference in someone else’s life because of what I had to endure.
