HOW THIS WORK CAME INTO BEING
Even as a young child my mother tells stories, of me loving to wrap my siblings (all 6 of them) up in bandages to nurse them. I remember comforting my younger brother when I was also little as we took him to hospital to have his broken arm set. My mother always cared for everyone who needed help and my father being an Irish/ Kiwi talked to the birds, the little people and his ancestors. Healing and caring for people seen and unseen are some of my earliest memories.
As a teenager in New Zealand I knew that I wanted to be a Physical Therapist. My professional training began at Otago Polytechnic, graduating in 1979. I then completed the two year post-graduate program with the New Zealand Manipulative Therapists Association. After working in both the Hospital setting in Wellington and in a Sports Medicine center in Christchurch I came to America in 1985 for additional post-graduate work at kaiser Vallejo Hospital. Here, I met and fell in love with my wonderful husband Tony, I have made my home with him and our children in the Napa Valley ever since.
I have a BSC and I am a licensed Physical Therapist with the State of California.
I have completed Post Graduate Studies with the "Infant Parent Mental Health Fellowship" offered through UC Davis, Ca. This training has gathered and strengthened my commitment to work with families, deepening my understanding of the complexity of all our relationships.
Over the last 15 years I have studied Kum Nye -Tibetan Yoga and Relaxation, Time Space and Knowledge, Revelations of Mind and Lotus Trilogy. All teachings are taught by the senior teaching staff of Tarthang Tulku. Tarthung Tulku is one of the last remaining masters to have received a complete education in Tibet.
2023: I graduated from The Mindfulness Meditation Teachers Certification Program with Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach. I am continuing my studies with Jack and Tara in their MIndfulness Mentor Program.
In addition to my firm grounding in traditional Western medical approaches, I have done extensive training in alternative therapies. The teachings that have influenced me most are:
Kum Nye - Tibetan Yoga and Relaxation - Dharma Publishing Academy
Cranio-sacral Therapy – Upledger Foundation
Integrated Manual Therapy- DCR
Visceral Mobilization – Jean-Pierre Barral
Kinetic Control – Mark Commerford, PT
Living In Process – Anne Wilson Schaef, PhD. Jane Slaughter, PhD
Natural Learning Rhythms/Optimum Parenting –Ba and Josette Luvmor PhD
End of Life Passages and Home Death – Nancy Poer
Life Coaching - Dave Ellis, Joanna Bangs and Joan Oakden-Parsons
Connecting with the Whole – Joanna Macy, Rudolf Steiner
Movement Forms - Tai Chi, Pilates,Yoga and Feldenkrais
Integrating mind, body and spirit treatment - Jodi Hunt P.T., Kathy Robinson P.T.
Spiritual studies in Catholicism, Tibetian Buddhism, Anthroposophy, Diamond Heart and Shamanism
My studies, apprenticeships, workshops, and work with my clients over the years has combined with my personal life experience, marriage and the parenting of our two children to move my work into a holistic model. My work combines a scientific knowledge base and an intuitive healing strength. With this perspective, even when addressing a specific issue, I treat the whole person. Whether Life Coaching or Holistic Healing each session or class is individual and unique and may move between traditional and alternative techniques depending on the needs and goals of the client(s). Portrait by Megan Reeves