My Story

“Hello there.

I was raised in the UK by two loving parents—my mother is Norwegian, my father, British. I attended an academically rigorous school in Kent, where I was fortunate to be taught by two exceptional art teachers who profoundly changed my life. Art became the primary means of connecting with my inner world. I immersed myself creatively, taking photographs and creating white wax sculptures of pregnant women, representing their bellys as pure and untouched by life and the world. It may sound cliché, but it felt incredibly profound to the mind of a teenager!

At that time, my health was not great. I didn’t embody the youthful energy one would typically expect. I was often tired, having been diagnosed with Glandular Fever at the age of thirteen. Even after years of tests and negative results, the symptoms never seemed to go away. Specialists suggested that I might have Post Viral Fatigue Syndrome.

I was destined to go straight to art college, instead, at age 17, I signed up with Elite worldwide and became an international fashion model. It was the perfect way to celebrate the end of school; traveling, parties and living a life of excess. I was riding a natural high, although I never touched drugs. It was a magical time of adventure and exploration, connecting with people and the world.

However, it wasn’t all good. I was often interviewed by teen magazines who asked how I stayed so ‘fit and healthy.’ The truth was that I was far from living a healthy lifestyle! I was eating irratically, opting for low-fat, processed snacks loaded with artificial sugar (known to cause cancer) and drinking. It just didn’t feel authentic. I wanted to learn how to be fit, bright-eyed and genuinely happy—the balanced way.

I was suprised as despite reducing my calorie intake, as was the norm for models, I found I had more energy. I didn't understand why. I felt happier, had better memory, was I quicker thinking, more creative, clear-minded and needed less sleep. I never felt better. However, after almost a decade of hedonistic fun and hard work (yes, suprisingly modeling can be gruelling; seven hours of walking to castings daily and swimwear shoots in the Icelandic winter for the Sunday Times!) I opted out and spontaneously left New York to spend time in nature with old friends.

I also longed for a ‘normal’ diet reminiscent of my childhood, but when I returned to my old eating habits, my health deteriorated and I felt awful again. I had almost forgotten the low moods, lethargy and need for more sleep. My mind felt clouded and my body heavy. It became clear that how I felt was directly influenced by my diet. I realised that I had been consuming the wrong fuel for my body, akin to filling an unleaded car with diesel. I discovered through research, trial and error, that a primative diet of protein and low in carbs gave me the best quality of life and has been my diet now for over 2 decades.

During this time I also dove deep into the world of breath and meditation. I followed the Art of Living, an incredible program of wisdom, yoga, meditation and breathwork. This journey took me around the world, from Bangalore, India, to the Black Forest in Germany. I spent days, if not weeks, with minimal thoughts—just being.

I also worked with my breath, accessing emotions trapped in the body; the principle being that how you feel influences your breathing rhythm. If you alter your breathing rhythm, you can access and release associated feelings. For instance, anger and fear result in short, shallow breaths; shock triggers a sharp in-breath and sadness elicits a long, outward sigh.

Through this ancient practice, I was able to shed many layers of old ‘baggage,’ some of which I had no idea where it came from. Much of what we carry is beyond our conscious understanding.

I was now in search of a therapy that could access and release this ‘baggage’. I wanted to feel the light in myself, like I did as a child. I studied Shiatsu for four years and explored various mind and body therapies. I trained with Elenor Tonetti, director of Birth into Being. She works with the limbic imprint and her principal is to release baggage before you have chidren so you don’t pass it on as we pass on our consciousness as much as we do our genes.

I enrolled in a BSc (Hons) in Complementary Studies degree in London which provided the solid, scientific grounding that I needed to become a somatic therapist. Our tutors were wise and knowledgable, while I knew intuition could not be learnt and I had to develop that myself.

After the birth of my own two children I worked with couples, helping to prepare for and assist them during birth as a doula. I taught Hypnobirthing and assisted over fifty births and every one was life affirming and beautiful in its own unique way.

This experience provided me with valuable insights into the complex range of emotions. I collaborated with many mothers and fathers, utilising Somatic Therapy to help them prepare for birth and provide them with support postnatally.

Having worked with people now across a variety of fields, I found that although every person is unique, we are also very similar.