Professional Counselor Associate
A Little About Me
I was born and raised in the creeks and woodlands of Eden, North Carolina. At a young age, I remember making up awareness games to explore the strange landscapes of the mind- how long can I stare at this tree branch before I don't see it anymore? How long can I keep my focus on breathing before I am mysteriously carried elsewhere? And where is it that I go?
This path into the creative healing arts has no real beginning, as we know, but I can see early glimmers of the trail in vivid, radiant experiences I had as a child exploring the natural world, in deep Dreamtime states, in the realms of theater and play, as well as times of strong emotional/psychological distress. When I later encountered meditation as a young adult, I rediscovered the peace and magic of some of these early experiences, but now alongside bouts of panic and intense pressure in my body that made it challenging to actually practice seated meditation. I felt rage gripping in my neck, racing thoughts, shortness of breath–I wanted to jump out of my skin!
Fortunately, I was able to live and train at a Zen Buddhist monastery for nearly 2 years, and then trained in somatic and parts-work healing modalities, which have all helped me have more insight into the causes of suffering and the ways to greater wellbeing. I also discovered Shinzen Young's Unified Mindfulness system to be an excellent fit for my work and my own practice. As I've continue to weave together meditation and mindfulness training, nervous system regulation, communion with the natural world, and expressive parts work, I’ve received a nudge from Life to offer to others these precious ways that have supported my healing and growth. Below is a little more context for some of the pivotal experiences that have shaped my offerings thus far.
Wilderness Rites of Passage Work
After completing a Vision Fast with the School of Lost Borders, I later trained with the school in the Art of Mirroring in Council, and this experience was a strong initiatory rite and threshold that cracked open my armored heart into a direct experience of overflowing compassion for others and belonging in the natural world. I am also deeply grateful to have quested within a traditional Lakota Red Road community. I continue to train and guide groups in Wilderness Rites of Passage.
Voice Dialogue Parts Work
This playful and creative healing modality, developed by Hal and Sidra Stone, entered my life while living at Great Vow Monastery. Finally, I found a practice that safely welcomed all parts of me to be exactly as they are without needing to be fixed or squeezed into a more acceptable Magnolia. What physical and emotional relief! I could give an inner warrior protector her own space and voice, as well as a magical child presence, inner critic, manager, etc. I began to have the experience of a dynamic, compassionate Center as my true home base, the place where I can welcome all that arises with gentle, even humorous discernment. I trained as a practitioner in this modality from the Voice Dialogue Institute in Seattle, and it has a large influence on my work with clients and groups.
Spiritual Influences
I am a student and teacher-in-training for Shinzen Young's Unified Mindfulness System, as well as a student of Kim Lincoln’s Terrain of Essence, which is an inquiry-based path of psychospiritual self-discovery. I love this practice because it always starts exactly where we are, and is based on a love and curiosity for the ever-deepening truth of the moment as it reveals itself. I have also been spiritually shaped by Zen Buddhism, Insight Meditation, Byron Katie, and Arnold Mendell’s Processwork.
Residency at Great Vow Zen Monastery
I lived and trained for two years at a Buddhist Monastery, where I began to learn how to sit in the heat of emotional and psychic fire and to glimpse into the truth that my essential being couldn’t be burned. This practice continues on as a life-long path of learning for me– the Dharma has sunk into my bones. Through the beautiful crucible and cradle of meditation retreats, my body started to thaw and unwind patterns of trauma from the tissues and muscles of my body. This led me to train in Somatic Experiencing to more deeply understand how to release trauma from the body-mind.
Somatic/Energetic Healing
Through a combination of Buddhist meditation retreats, 7+ years of training in traditional Brazilian ceremonial healing practices, holding a space of guardianship for others in ceremony on a monthly basis, completing Jonathan Goldman’s Gift of the Body Healership training, and ongoing training in Somatic Experiencing, I am coming into a deeper understanding of the complexities of the human body as a vehicle for safely digesting and expressing the full range of human emotions and energies. More and more, I am trusting the physiologic design of my nervous system and the creative intelligence of the psyche and the greater psyche of the natural world to guide me through experiences of fear, grief, and deep psychological pain into peace, ease, and trust.
Books that have changed me
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The Spell of the Sensuous by David Abram
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Soulcraft by Bill Plotkin
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The Kin of Ata are Waiting for you by Dorothy Bryant
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The Madonna Secret by Sophie Strand
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The Disobedience of the Daughter of the Sun by Martin Prechtel
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The Smell of Rain on Dust by Martin Prechtel
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Women who Run with the Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estes
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Loving What Is by Byron Katie
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Wholly Here, Holy You by Kim Lincoln
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Soul Without Shame by Byron Brown
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Parzival and the Wet Black Branch of Language by Martin Shaw
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The Gift of the Body by Jonathan Goldman
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The Unfolding Now by AH Almaas
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The Science of Enlightenment by Shinzen Young
Deep gratitude for the teachers and mentors who guide my path​
​Shinzen Young, Chozen and Hogen Bays Roshi, Clarissa Pinkola Estes, Byron Katie, Jonathan Goldman, Kim Lincoln, Hameed Almaas, Rob Burbea, Suzie Wolfer, Martin Shaw, David Abram, and Cynthia Bourgeault