My own journey began over 25 years ago now. During a very stressful time, with my marriage ending, the discovery of a breast lump, and adapting to life as a single parent, whilst studying for a degree as a mature student. Mindfulness practices quickly become a practical ‘toolkit’ that supported both my physical and emotional well-being. A ‘hidden’ life jacket that helped me stay afloat and become more resilient in navigating life’s challenges.
Mindfulness continues to support me to make many big changes in my life directions. Stillness has led me to align my values and follow inner nudges, with conscious choices and actions.
In 2011, I left behind a public sector career, at the point of promotion (ouch!)… Since then, life has taken on a whole new flow. I found myself travelling across America, researching alternative restorative approaches. You can view my Churchill Report here. On return, I founded a training and professional awareness raising platform, speaking at conferences around the world. Following inspired thoughts with action, I lone-travelled for 4 months across New Zealand. Then I wrote a book about it: Reclaimed – Turning an Uneventful Life into an Adventure. The main purpose for writing this was to inspire others to open to their own life purpose and adventures. Whilst all this was happening, I was also attending retreats, talks and meditation groups, practicing meditation most days, and integrating mindfulness practice into my everyday life.
With a wish to share these powerful and transformative practices with others, it seemed natural to train as a teacher with Breathworks (in 2016). I began to teach 8 week Mindfulness for Health and Mindfulness for Stress courses, as well as setting up practice nurture groups. In May 2017, I moved to live and work, for a year, as a residential retreat coordinator at The Barn Retreat in Devon. I now facilitate specialist mindfulness groups and courses, and lead retreats between my two homes of Devon and Yorkshire.
I offer a limited number of personal mentoring sessions, mostly over Zoom or telephone.