About Me
From my darkest
days...
...to living my bestlife!
"Your story could be the key that unlocks someone else's prison."
-Unknown
My Story
"You are too sensitive."
Literally from the time I was born I was considered “sensitive,” both physically & emotionally. This showed up as severe digestive issues, allergic reactions, and a variety of other symptoms like headaches, body pain, and anxiety throughout my life. Not only have I always been “highly sensitive,” but also empathetic, taking on the energy around me and feeling deeply for others.
I got the message very early on that this was a problem, or seen as a weakness. Doctors often passed me off saying, “Nothing is actually wrong with you,” or “It’s all in your head,” while noting things like, “Anxious” or “Psychosomatic” in my file.
This is dangerous enough when you aren’t believed for having a reaction to a medication, but the most destructive result was that I lost trust in myself and disconnected from the very real messages my body was trying to send me about what was good for me and what was not. I just pushed through, living as best as I could.
However, survival mode only works for so long. In 2011, at the age of 31, my time was up, and I found myself bedridden and quickly deteriorating from a mysterious illness. Once again, doctors shook their heads, but this time I had the motivation of my precious two-year-old staring at me from the edge of my bed.
This sent me on a mission to save my own life.
While I doggedly looked for practitioners who would not only listen, but also believe me, I researched day & night and started making major lifestyle changes. Things slowly started to improve. Then I began piecing together my care team. I got some answers…and even more questions. I had lots of reactions to treatments, and more practitioners who didn’t know what to do with me.
I took all the guidance I could get, but ultimately I had to find my own way.
This was where Mind-Body Medicine – trauma healing, stress management, & reconnecting with myself – took me from a healing plateau of just getting by, to thriving.
That makes it sound so simple…it is and it definitely isn’t! The journey back home to yourself…to your intuition, inner knowing, innate wisdom…AND rewiring your nervous system to a state of balance & calm, is the most challenging & valuable one you can take. I believe it is the key that unlocks everything you have been trying to find in all areas of your life, but especially health.
And, spoiler alert, being sensitive is the greatest advantage you could have working FOR you. It is a gift I wouldn’t trade for anything. And, though the illnesses I had were definitely not “all in my head,” working with my mind and its connection to my body had the greatest impact on my ability to heal.
Every single one of these experiences led me to seek very specific training so I could take all that I had been through and use it to fulfill my calling to support others through their biggest challenges.
It is an absolute honor to have the opportunity to walk you back home to yourself and help you truly see that…
Your sensitivity is your greatest strength!
Orchid Hypothesis
An orchid person, versus a dandelion, is someone who has genes that make them more sensitive and susceptible to their environment. In a negative environment this can be devastating to both mental and physical health, but with positive surroundings and good care orchid people can thrive at an even higher level than dandelions and be some of the most creative, successful, and happy people in the world. And, as it turns out, this isn't a weakness at all, it is phenomenal adaptability. This sensitivity, or fine-tuning, to the inner and outer world that can appear as inconvenient symptoms is actually an important messaging system that can guide and accelerate healing. Another benefit, Orchids can take therapeutic treatment in very quickly and deeply.
The way you tend to yourself makes all the difference.
Qualifications
Certifications & Programs Attended:
- Center for Mind-Body Medicine –
Professional Training Program (September 2020) &
Advanced Training Program (November 2020)
- Functional Medicine Coaching Academy Certification (January 2018)
- Harvard Medical School – Mind Body Medicine: Guiding Patients to Health and Happiness, Continuing Education Course (October 2017)
- Benson-Henry Institute, Mass General Hospital – Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Course (Summer 2013)
- Kripalu – Getting Unstuck: Moving Beyond Depression, Anxiety, and Chronic Illness with Dr. James Gordon (May 2013)
My Specialties:*
- Autoimmune Conditions
- Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
- Chronic Lyme & Tick Diseases
- Digestive Issues – Including IBS
- Fibromyalgia
- Health/Medical Anxiety
- “Mystery”/Undiagnosed Conditions
- Overall Sensitivity/Multiple Chemical Sensitivity
*My typical client is highly sensitive (physically, emotionally, or both) and often can’t even tolerate treatments recommended by their practitioner(s), so we focus on Mind-Body Medicine techniques to regulate the nervous system and bring down reactivity.