A family lineage of Somatic skill
This work is in my blood.
 Although I trained in Shiatsu and Acupuncture in the 90's and have been in private practice ever since, it was not a direct path. Blood has many stories, and I believe now that we are guided by them, and their need for expression.Â
I wandered and sailed
Due to the sudden death of my father when I was 17, I decided to forego University (definitely not his wish) and see more of the world instead. Eventually, I worked on private yachts as a chef for both the crew and guests - with absolutely no experience in either cooking or yachting. This, only a 19-year-old might have energy for, and I still laugh at myself for trying. I realised having proper cooking skills would help (!), and as I couldn't afford to go to French cooking school, I worked at one for a year in Paris to gain my 'Grand Diplome' in Cuisine. I returned to the yachting world only to discover that more education in being a chef still did not make the job much easier, but it was a great adventure that was completely worth the gamble.
Amidst my travels I had a revelation
Between yacht seasons I would travel, and one year I went to a meditation retreat in Thailand. This was back in the day when yoga was still 'new', and out of the group of 30 women present, no one was available to teach yoga at 4:30 am. I offered to teach this 'Somatic Stretch' work I was raised in, and it proved to be a huge turning point in my life. After the 90-minute morning session of stretch, people would ask me questions about their physical issues. I realised - for the first time in my life - that I had an innate understanding of the body and where issues were actually arising from. It surprised me, and my closest friend who had grown up with me and who was also on the same retreat.
It took me crossing the planet to discover that I did the same thing my pioneering family did back home.
I had an experience that changed my life - and my mind
At the meditation retreat, I had an unsettling experience that the nuns called 'Kundalini'. I didn't really understand it, but I left the retreat a day early as the intensity and disorientation was so strong I felt I needed to leave the compound. The revelation of my new found abilities at the retreat center caused me to forego traveling in India alone, and instead to study the body. I began a 2200-hour Shiatsu and Eastern Diagnostic program at the age of 23. Just before graduating two years later, I had a powerful surge of energy suddenly rush up my spine. This left me with auditory and visual hallucinations, an inability to sleep or eat, and began a very long and harrowing journey that changed my life, and put me on the path of the work I do today.Â
