Deirdre's Story

My work is born of a life long passion to understand the human condition. I believe humankind is ultimately good. When we stumble, we may lack the tools and support to regain our balance. We are wired to seek balance. 

In fifth grade I decided I wanted to be a brain surgeon. A few years later I changed my mind to heart surgeon, having decided the heart was more important than the head. I still wanted to understand the human condition. In my early teens I obsessively read
Psychology Today, and in my late teens I had changed my major from pre-med to Psychology and Sociology, grew passionate about women’s issues, human rights issues, planet ecology, nutrition, and the way in which social constructs try to limit who we can be.

Degree in hand, I began my years long exploration of healing modalities that considered the whole person, having found western science and medicine lacking. I studied bodywork before incorporating yoga training, adding that into my growing areas of expertise on physical and emotional health. I have now been in practice 26 years and have worked with several thousand people across a broad spectrum. The diversity of my client base has provided the good fortune of supporting people with everything from MS, scoliosis, HIV/AIDS, cancer, rehabilitation from injury and surgery to trauma, addiction, depression and anxiety, death and dying, and major life transitions.

My own experience with cancer in 2010 deepened my capacity to understand the personal impact of crisis. Shocking events derail us, forcing a different experience of self. The immediate goal is to make it through, followed by taking stock of the jumble and figuring out how to reconfigure. Having lived a life of good health, being sick and in pain was a visceral education on feeling eroded, overwhelmed, unmoored, and very uncomfortable. I was reminded of life’s uncertainty again but this time I got it at a deeper level. A break in rhythm also helped me integrate years of learning, input and experience I hadn’t realized were only partially digested as I too focused on gathering. I would never wish my experience on anyone but I am a better human and practitioner for having walked that mine field.

I am in awe of our tenacity as humans. We are grit and grace, courage and fear all mixed in with our desire to be our best selves. Whether physical pain, emotional patterns, a raging inner critic or sense of longing, we are wired to heal, to move toward wholeness. We know this intuitively--the desire is there, sometimes the tools and support are not. Everyone needs help at some point. My passion is in helping people move along their path to do the most they can with what they have as they navigate the mess and glory of being human.