about me

I live in Herefordshire in the UK with my partner and 6 year old son, and it's here that I have my ‘garden room’ office where I see people both in person and online. Read on for info about my professional credentials and personal journey…

 

my journey

 

In 2005, chronic pain led me to the Holy Isle, Scotland. What began as a week long retreat turned into a six-year deep dive into mindfulness and Buddhism. I had tried every modality available to help with my disabling headache pain and in the end, since nothing worked, I realised this was an 'inside job'. Meditating daily in my seaside hut, I found ways to soften and unpick the causes of the pain and was gradually able to live a full life again.

 

Not only that, but because of the extraordinary benefit I had found in mindfulness, I decided to train as a mindfulness teacher and in 2012 I relocated to Edinburgh to teach mindfulness, leading workshops in the UK and Europe, teaching others to teach mindfulness and becoming an Honorary Fellow at Aberdeen University, teaching on their MSc Studies in Mindfulness.

 

I took a step back from work in 2018 after moving to Staffordshire with my partner Gareth and giving birth to my son. In recent years, I’ve expanded my portfolio with life coach training from the Needs Based Coaching Institute.

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More than 20 years in to my journey with chronic pain, I am not headache free, but I have learnt how to manage them so that they remain at their minimum. That I can live with! In fact strange to say, I often feel grateful for the gifts the headaches give me. They force me to rest, to reconnect with the core of myself, they bring perspective and remind me of what most matters. They also give me regular updates to my training in the dilemma of being human, which I feel enables me to meet others there with more compassion and insight.

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