Your body is a hugely underutilized resource for learning, healing and life satisfaction. When you learn to access and listen to the wisdom of your inner self you receive real guidance about how to live in a way that optimizes wellbeing for yourself and for others. Your inner self is quietly awaiting your attention.
I’m a seasoned wellness professional passionate about helping people put the joy back into their lives — when stress, unhealthy habits, dissatisfaction or setbacks have made life a struggle rather than a natural source of flourishing. My life’s work is guiding a body-centred process that strengthens body mind connections and builds life skills for higher levels of wellness. I know from experience that when you slow down and listen to the body’s wisdom, you’re directed toward greater energy and aliveness; two essential components of wellness.
My services are focused on helping people de stress and re-shape their lives to meet their core needs. I believe that achieving wellness requires a different relationship with your body along with the right tools to make desired changes. I guide people in tuning into their inner wisdom as an important resource for insight and becoming whole. My overall intention is to empower people to be the change they want to see in themselves.
Although the way I work with people is therapeutic, it is not therapy. I encourage people to view themselves in the spirit of adventure — with a sense of curiousity, appreciation, experimentation and receptivity. By slowing down and listening to their body there is new awareness and possibility: the possibility of being their best self and discovering the best way to live.
I’ve taught Power, Flow and Yin Yoga classes since 2001. After many years of teaching and practicing yoga, I’ve personally gravitated toward teaching Yin Yoga. Yin Yoga helps to release deep tension, improve flexibility and increase circulation in the joints through long-held floor postures and slow movements. Because of the slower pace of Yin Yoga, I’m able to weave mindfulness meditation and stress relief techniques into each class.
My work with people rests on five principles:
- People are naturally creative, resourceful and capable of growing whole.
- People are multi-layered beings with a capacity to tap into and integrate the wealth of information available from their whole self, not just the rational brain.
- Health is rooted in interdependence — our physical body, our psycho-emotional state, our connection to others and nature are related.
- The human body is a foundational pathway into one’s internal experience and a resource for learning and transformation.
- Simple changes in the way we see ourselves and in our daily routines can change our whole life — we become what we practice.
What’s Important for My Own Sense of Wellbeing
In my own life, I calm my mind and revitalize my body through meditation, yoga and activities in nature (hiking, cycling, X-country skiing, camping, gardening or walking along beaches or in local neighbourhoods). These are three things that, without fail, get me out of my head and help me feel happier, energized and connected with life. I have also learned the importance of having clearly defined daily renewal rituals, focusing on what and who matters, having a sense of meaning and purpose, doing what satisfies me, and savouring life’s pleasures. I come back to the basics for simplifying my life, over and over again.
Summary of Professional Training
I found my way to a yoga teacher training in 1997 while on a year sabbatical from work. That decision changed the course of my life, eventually leading me to a new career sharing the practices of Yoga. My studies and personal practice since that time have had particular emphasis on the therapeutic applications of Yoga. To this day I am fascinated by the capacity of the body, mind and heart to heal. My deep desire to understand the process of change and human potential guides my ongoing work in mindfulness meditation, psychology and life coaching. Today, I enjoy working one-to-one with people, helping them become whole and find more satisfaction in everyday life. I also offer wellness-based workshops and teach a few Yin Yoga classes.
I’ve received professional certification in: Positive Psychology Coaching with Positive Acorn; Mindfulness-Based Psychosynthesis through the Kentucky Center of Psychosynthesis; the International Association of Yoga Therapists (IAYT) accredited Integrated Yoga Therapy and Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy programs; and Life Coaching Skills with the Certified Coaches Federation. As a 500-hour Yoga Alliance certified teacher, I have attended multiple yoga-based trainings and am committed to self-study. In my late twenties, I graduated with a Master’s degree in Environmental Studies from York University, and worked for 13 years in the public and private sectors.
Why the ‘Lotus’ Logo?
The “lotus” is an ancient yet contemporary symbol of growth and flourishing. The Creative Pathways logo contains many colours, reflecting the many facets of a human being AND the many pathways to a life well-lived. Like the lotus, human beings are continually renewing and unfolding as they grow into wholeness and maturity.
If you are interested in learning more about my services and how we might work together please Contact me.
“If you want to envision a happy person’s stance, imagine one foot rooted in the present with mindful appreciation of what one has—and the other foot reaching toward the future for yet-to-be-uncovered sources of meaning.”
– Dr. Robert Biswas-Diener & Dr. Todd Kashdan