I love the work I do. I love to see the transformation that is possible when people move through and past their pain to enjoy life. I work with people in a different way than most professionals. I don’t diagnose. I come from the perspective that nothing is actually really wrong. You might feel awful. Life might suck. Your physical and emotional being may feel in excruciating pain. Life could be terrifying. It’s normal to feel like this for many reasons and it is possible not to be stuck there forever.
I know this reality from experience. I grew up in a small town and moved to the city for university. It was overwhelming in many ways. I was naive and trusting and was taken for a ride in more ways than one. In comparison, it appeared as though everyone else seemed to navigate through life with ease and understand knew which way was up. My perception led to isolation and loneliness. For several years I did not reach out for help. Instead, I did the opposite and tried to protect myself by curling up deep inside. You know that famous painting called “the Scream”? That felt like my daily reality, except the screamer was multiplied thousands of times, assaulting me as I spiraled down the bottomless pit. I sought the only solution I could find to escape. I was suicidal because I felt I had no other choice. This brought on its own distressing feelings of pain and shame, adding to my misery.
I hit the bottom of the pit and as I started to come up, I was desperate to not feel such paralyzing pain and misery. I finally looked for help and began healing through talk therapy. However, it was when I began to understand why I felt emotions so strongly that I was able to find balance again. Studying Rubenfeld Synergy Method (RSM) was the big step to recovery. During the RSM training, I discovered that I am an empath who is really, really good at resonating with sadness and pain. I started to understand pain in a new way. When my pain was all bundled together with that of others, it was overwhelming. Now I have expanded my resonance repertoire to range from pain to pleasure and many emotional states – including love and joy. I can enjoy life to the fullest!
Being an empath, means that I feel other people’s realities though not necessarily as a direct correlation. For example, if you have a sore knee then I may feel pain in my ankle. If you’re afraid, I may feel anger. I’ve mapped out my inner landscape to work as my compass. This is how I discovered that the physical and emotional pain of others is a gift. As I learned to differentiate the pain locale, I discovered that I could take care of my own hurt first and then use my empathy to guide others to unravel their pain.
Working with Wellness is the name of my company. Why? Because everybody engages in life from the place that they understand. It’s functional. Patterns that function result in survival. Survival is one level, thriving is another. People generally come to see me because they’re in some kind of pain – either emotional or physical. When you listen to pain you are not saying that it is wrong or bad or that you need to mask it, avoid it or stop it. You’re saying that there’s a message. When you listen to the message you begin to thrive.
I want to listen to the message. The thing is, if you come to me because you are feeling pain then all you may be able to hear is how much you hurt. So how can that show up? You may have indigestion, back pain, you feel depressed or sad, you have panic attacks and/or you cry often, are really angry most of the time, feel like you have to be happy or or you’re anxious….. You are uncomfortable in your own skin.Your discomfort can be so overwhelming that’s all you’re aware of… or you may be totally numb. That’s why I do what I do. I don’t just listen with my ears. I hear the words. I also listen with my hands and body. That way I can “hear” physical sensations, emotions, energetic states and spiritual connection. Because, when you connect with yourself and say hello to the message then you can transform from being locked into that state of being to living your life fully.
The logo for Working With Wellness also has significance for me and I’d like to share it with you. It’s a cute little logo. The little guy holding his hands in the air looks joyful, because I want to bring people joy and acceptance of the range of life. It’s origin is the molecular diagram of H2O, with the arms being hydrogen and the body oxygen. Why did I choose this molecule in particular? Water is strong especially on the surface but when you are willing to break that tension there is a weightlessness awaiting you. This is a metaphor for my work. People hold onto memories that create tension within them. I let them hear the larger possibilities within and that it is possible to enjoy the journey of life.
