About
CDC & DCA Certified – Divorce / Separation & Co-Parenting Coach - Gottman Certified Relationship Coach
CDC & DCA Certified – Divorce / Separation Coach & Co‑Parenting specialist / Gottman Certified Relationship Coach / Mediator
I grew up in Hawke’s Bay on the sunny East Coast of Aotearoa/New Zealand, surrounded by vineyards, coastline, and the iconic Art Deco charm of Napier. Although it was an idyllic place to spend my childhood, my teenage years were shaped by my parents’ separation - a time that brought confusion, grief, and a deep sense of instability for me and my four siblings. Like many children of separating parents, we held onto the hope that our family might come back together. That hope never eventuated, but the experience profoundly shaped who I am and the work I do today.
Living through a family separation at a time when divorce was far less common gave me a unique, firsthand understanding of how deeply these transitions affect children. It taught me how separation can echo through a child’s emotional world long after the adults believe things have “settled.” That lived experience is now one of my greatest strengths as a coach - allowing me to support families with empathy, clarity, and a child‑centred lens.
Before becoming a coach, I spent over three decades in my own Beauty Therapy business - working closely with clients in one‑on‑one settings, building trust, navigating sensitive conversations, and supporting people through vulnerable moments. Those years taught me how to listen deeply, communicate with care, and create safe spaces - skills that now sit at the heart of my coaching practice.
Today, I bring together my professional certifications, my lived experience, and my long history of client‑focused work to help individuals and families navigate separation, rebuild stability, and create healthier co‑parenting relationships. My mission is to make separation, relationship and co‑parenting support accessible, practical, and grounded in real‑life understanding - so parents can move forward with confidence, and children can thrive.
Kimberlee Sweeney
My former husband and I have one daughter who we co-share custody and co-parent together, very successfully.
When I went through my own separation and divorce, I was determined to create a new home for my daughter where she would feel happy and secure. I quickly realised it was paramount to build an amicable relationship with my ex-husband that would enhance open and co-operative communication and build a supportive platform for ongoing co-parenting. It was during the period of separation, back in 2011, that I became aware of the lack of support for people either considering or undergoing separation and divorce, and the aftermath of dealing with the life changes this process brings for both parent and children, and I then trained to become a Certified Divorce and Separation Coach. A few years on from my own separation and subsequent divorce, I realised then that all relationships sometimes require additional professional support to stay on track or get back on track, as it takes both parties to put the work in to create a long and happy marriage, if that’s what you are wanting for your family. So from there I also trained to become a Gottman Relationship Coach to help those wanting to stay and make it work. My ongoing education since has become very important for me to be able to assist my clients in all areas of relationships, for healthy communication and conflict resolution.
Indeed, it was my personal experience that was the precursor to my interest in training as a Separation/Divorce, Co-Parenting and Relationship Coach
As there are many different needs and stages within a marriage and I am here with conviction to guide and support my clients in the varying degrees required, whether choosing to stay together or to separate.
I trained as a CDC Certified Divorce Coach in 2015 – the 1st in NZ, through the CDC Certified Divorce Coach program based in Florida, USA. Then in 2024 I became a dual Certified Divorce Coach with the Divorce Coaches Academy DCA, I have also trained with the Gottman Institute and have completed papers in Gottman relationship coaching, level 1 & 2. Additional education around conflict management and Co-Parenting support has rounded my skillsets to help clients in all avenues of relationships and separation and co-parenting.
I work one on one either in-person if you live in Auckland or via zoom or phone anywhere around New Zealand. I have worked with on-line clients throughout New Zealand for many years successfully.
Remember you many not succeed in marriage but you can succeed at divorce, with the right support by your side. Contact me for a free discovery session, via zoom, skype, facetime, phone or face to face.