Asia Hilario continues to shine, empower women

Saipan-born Asia Hilario continues to make the CNMI proud, this time after being named one of the Top 10 empowerment coaches to look out for in 2021, according to an article published on the Yahoo Finance website.

Hilario, who was recognized as a Woman of the Year in 2019 by a California-based women empowerment organization called “Women on the Rise,” shares her latest accomplishment with nine other empowerment coaches: Kristina Licare, Jessica Pinili, Jessie Ereddia, Annie Calvaneso, Krista Weber, Mary Zagarian, Claudette Malone, Stacey S. Crawley, and Laura Sylvester.

The Yahoo Finance article described Hilario as a self-love coach, a philanthropist, a crisis counselor for CrisisTextline, a women empowerment mental health and wellness blogger and a podcaster.

Hilario credits self-help books and therapy for helping her go through so much in her personal journey, catapulting her to where she is now.

In an earlier interview, Hilario said that by lifting other women, an entire community and society can elevate. “Women are powerful beings, who can do incredible things, and by empowering them (giving them resources, offering support, encouraging them, educating them, giving them a voice) we can change the world.” she said.

Part of her advocacy in women empowerment is breaking the stigma surrounding mental health. “I’m trying to de-stigmatize seeking mental help for those who need it. The more we talk about mental health, the braver people will be to not only seek help, but to speak about it as well. The biggest struggle I’ve had in the past was feeling like I was alone in my struggles. I want to use my voice to make sure that no one else feels that they’re alone in their struggles,” she added.

Asia Hilario

Now pursuing her vision in San Francisco, Hilario

continues to strengthen economic, social and educational potential of women all around the world. The Yahoo Finance article mentioned how she is conquering every goal on her list by using her voice through empowerment and self-love coaching in helping other women find their inner power to transform their lives.

Hilario never fails to reach out to the people in her home island. In October last year, she shared with Saipan Tribune how to guard one’s emotional wellbeing during the pandemic. “…Emotional instability comes from the emotional pain of grief. In a a Harvard study I recently read, it spoke about grief and the five stages relating to the pandemic, that grief doesn’t just come in the form of losing someone. It also comes in the form of losing normalcy—losing our routines, losing our freedom to go outside and to go certain places to travel, etc., and even losing a sense of safety,” she said. “Find balance in the things you’re thinking. If you feel the worst image taking shape, make yourself think of the best image. Make yourself come into the present as much as you can. Since we cannot predict the future and we stress focusing on the past and what could have been, we must make it a habit to live in the present and we can do this by meditating and practicing mindfulness.”