Golden State of Mind

Breakout influencer Avery Woods on motherhood, podcasting and making the move to California

By Kaylor Jones / Photos by Claudia Johnstone / Location: Howdy House, Old Town Scottsdale/Phoenix Airbnb

There was never a doubt in Avery Woods’ mind that she was destined to become a nurse.

“I knew I wanted to be a nurse when I was a toddler because I was obsessed with watching medical shows with my dad,” Woods says. “I was also always drawn to kids, so I knew very early on that I wanted to go into pediatric nursing. I loved the aspects of mixing critical thinking and helping children.”

But a whole new world was opened to her when she began posting on social media while in nursing school. At first, it was just a fun outlet amidst the stresses of everyday life – she and her husband David and his two kids from a previous relationship were living paycheck to paycheck, David working as a patrol officer to support Woods while she attended school. Plus, in a taxing field like nursing, it can be all too easy for people to get lost in the negatives. Woods wanted her account to be a bright spot not just in her own life, but in the lives of all the nursing students and RNs who followed her.

“My goal when I first started consistently posting was to spread a positive light on nursing. I shared study tips, scrub styling tips, my journey working in the PICU and balancing work and motherhood.”

Over the years, as Woods graduated from nursing school and got a job as a bedside nurse in a pediatric ICU – giving birth to two children, Ziggy and Stevie, along the way – she continued posting, reaching larger and larger audiences. After her first paid collaboration with a scrubs company blossomed into a long-term partnership, Woods began to think there could be more to her social media hobby.

“I thought my followers were only there because of nursing content, but once I started posting more of my personal life, I realized they were there because of me,” she says. “Once I started posting more content outside of nursing, my videos began to pick up more and reach a larger audience, so I just went with it. Even though this wasn’t my original plan, I’m so grateful for how my life has turned out.”

In 2023, Woods signed with a management team and transitioned to working as a full-time influencer. Now she’s able to fully support her family, her husband of almost 10 years stepping away from a dangerous career with none of the financial worries they experienced in the past.

Living Heart-First

Though she’s no longer working in the field, Woods wouldn’t be the person she is today without the experiences she had as a nurse. She even has a tattoo on her spine, reading “and the angels cried you are going to save lives,” to commemorate all the children she took care of over the years.

“Working in a Level I trauma center, our unit saw some of the sickest kids in the state. I worked with some of the smartest, most inspirational nurses who taught me so much – the things we experienced together are not normal and those kinds of experiences bond you for life.”

For Woods, working in pediatrics as a mother herself ushered in a total shift of perspective. Being a witness to so much tragedy meant she became an anxious parent, always worried about her kids experiencing what her patients had.

But no matter the anxiety, motherhood is a continual source of joy for Woods. The most rewarding thing about being a mom – and being the breadwinner for her family – she says, is “seeing the joy in my children as they experience things my husband and I never did. I feel as if I’m healing my inner child as I raise them and I never expected that when I became a mom.”

As parents, Woods and her husband strive to emphasize kindness at every turn. This is especially important to Woods as someone whose job exposes her to all manner of online hate. “The world can be so negative and mean, and I feel so proud to have kids who are friends to everyone and always giving compliments to those around them.”

Her advice to fellow parents is to stay present as much as possible. “Enjoy every second, even the hard ones. It’s so true what they say – the days are long, but the years are so short!”

Raise Your Voice

As of fall 2023, Woods has added another title to her ever-growing resume: podcast host.

She first got the idea when she realized how many women were asking her for advice during Q&As with her audience. “I tend to not be shy when it comes to some taboo topics and even though that can attract hate, it helps so many more women, which is why it’s always worth it to me. I wanted a platform to connect with people in long-form content where it felt conversational, and a podcast was the perfect solution for that.”

Her goal with every episode of Cheers! with Avery Woods – which drops each Monday – is for listeners to feel like they’re listening to the big sister they never had. From deep dives into her own life to candid interviews with guests, Woods prioritizes authenticity at every step. The journey into a new form of content has been chock-full of incredible moments, including having her very own billboard in Times Square and interviewing her “Disney Channel icon,” Raven-Symoné.

And in the midst of all this career growth, Woods has elected to undergo another big change – moving from Arizona back to her and her husband’s home state of California. Not only will it bring them closer to family at a pivotal time in their kids’ lives, but it will lessen the burden of traveling for work when so many exciting podcast guests are based in the Golden State.

It’s been a bittersweet experience to leave what they thought was their forever home in Arizona, as well as the community that has supported them for years. “Blood isn’t always thicker than water and I truly believe you can choose who your family is. We have so many loved ones in Arizona, but we are so lucky to have the ability to go back and see them and have a place for them to visit in California.”

At the end of the day, Woods is full of gratitude for the audience that has made all of this possible. “Every day my husband and I look at each other and say, ‘What did we do to deserve this life?’” Woods says. “Life takes you in so many unexpected directions, but everything happens for a reason. Even my hardest lessons in life have led me to learn so much and that’s why I live my life without regrets.”