about me
a journey into mind-body healing
I began my career as a teacher and ceramic artist, drawn to creativity, expression, and working with my hands. In the early 2000s, I was living a full and busy life — constantly creating, moving and doing.
In 2003, what I thought was burnout turned out to be something more serious: a diagnosis of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, cancer of the immune system. I entered a long season of treatment, uncertainty, deep personal introspection and transformation.
discovering mindfulness and movement
During this time, alongside conventional treatments, three practices became my essential medicine: mindfulness meditation, Biodanza and Yoga Nidra. Mindfulness taught me how to meet fear, fatigue and pain with awareness and compassion. Biodanza — a dance-based movement practice — reawakened joy, vitality and connection, offering a space where I could move with and express whatever was present for me. Yoga Nidra, a deep rest practice, was a constant source of nourishing calm, especially during my experience of chemotherapy.
These practices sparked a lifelong curiosity about the nature of healing and the relationship between body and mind. My experience of cancer became a turning point — one that led me inward and toward the work I do today: a calling to teach and share what I was learning.
training and early work
In 2005, I travelled to the University of Massachusetts to train in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), later completing a certification in Mindfulness-based Interventions at Stellenbosch University. I also completed a three-year Biodanza facilitator training. For many years, I balanced working as a ceramic artist with running Biodanza circles and teaching mindfulness in various contexts.
how chromic pain led me to somatic movement
My journey into chronic pain began in 2013. After the sudden traumatic loss of my father and the ongoing stress of running a small creative business, I began to experience body-wide pain and muscular tension that I couldn’t resolve. My body felt like it was permanently switched “on” — tight, guarded, and exhausted. I sought help from many practitioners and doctors in an attempt to diagnose what was wrong. Massage, physiotherapy, and other bodywork offered temporary relief, but nothing seemed to create lasting help. It was confusing, scary and disheartening.
In 2018, my research kept leading me to Clinical Somatics or Hanna Somatics. This approach immediately resonated with me. Clinical Somatics works by re-educating the nervous system through slow, mindful movement. Instead of stretching or forcing the myofascial system to relax, it teaches the body to release chronic tension from within — restoring natural ease.
I found an online teacher, took a few classes and began to practice every day. Within a few months, all my pain and tension had resolved. I felt free, fluid and deeply at home in my body again.
The experience was transformative. I was so keen to share this amazing modality and went on to train through the Somatic Movement Centre, qualifying as a Level 3 Clinical Somatic Movement Instructor.
My interest in chronic pain also led me to undergoing a certification in Pain Reprocessing Therapy (PRT), a methodology which aligns beautifully with somatic work through helping the brain reinterpret physical sensations with safety and accuracy.
Having drawn on my personal practice of Yoga Nidra for the last 20 years, I am currently a facilitator-in-training through the Total Yoga Nidra Network (UK) and am able to share this modality with all my clients as part what I offer.
What had felt like huge life interruptions had slowly revealed themselves over time to be invitations — to slow down, to reconnect, and to discover a different way of being. The journey had thus led me into my current world of mindfulness, somatic movement and embodied healing.
Today my work is rooted in this lived experience – supporting others to gently reconnect with their bodies and to rediscover the possibility of healing from within.
how i work today
I guide people to reconnect with their body’s natural intelligence — learning to regulate, move and feel with gentleness, curiosity and trust. Depending on the person, my work integrates relevant practices from:
- Mindfulness
- Somatic movement
- Therapeutic dance and embodiment
- Pain reprocessing
- Yoga nidra
I support people living with stress, chronic pain or disconnection from their bodies in order to rediscover vitality, wholeness and their own inner resources.
a note on clay
I’ve turned down the volume on my ceramic practice for now so as to focus on this deeply meaningful work. Clay has been a companion for decades, and I trust it will call me back when the time is right. In the meantime, you’re welcome to visit my ceramics page to explore my archive of past pieces, to find information about upcoming workshops, and to see a small selection of work available for purchase.
