It’s Time for a Story…
Once upon a time… Ok, maybe not that kind of story.
About 30 years ago, I was working in the entertainment industry, working for publicists and dealing with enormous egos and unhealthy coping mechanisms. Following what I had thought to be my dreams, but instead was a nightmare of verbal abuse, being taken advantage of, all of which oddly supported the internal stories I had about myself. So I remained, moving job to job, hoping to someday thrive. “If only I could be accepted by these people,” “If only I could move up and make a name for myself,” “If only…” But I was miserable. I had no idea who I was or what would make me happy, or why I kept pursuing things (and people) that weren’t good for me. I didn’t yet know what I know now.
About 20 years ago, I changed direction. I went back to school and became a classroom teacher. This brought more fulfillment. I could see how I was making a difference in the world, and I loved working with the kids, helping them to grow and gain confidence in their skills and in themselves.
What I didn’t love was the internal nonsense in schools, the stress that teachers are under, coming from multiple directions at once: parents, administration, other teachers, politicians, the news, etc. It’s a lot… As I taught in multiple US states, and abroad in England, I found some of the same issues occurred no matter where I was.
I was often teaching ancient civilizations and literature, and this led to some understandings about humans throughout time and culture and their stories. And this led to my PhD program which focused on mythological narratives, literature, philosophy, religion, and depth psychology, a Jungian focus on archetypal and inner understandings of the human experience. I knew then that all of my previous experiences and career choices had led to this very exploration.
Once done with those courses, I found myself adrift once again and wandered into a nondual mindful community, in which silence was the ultimate teacher. I grew up in New York, and silence had not necessarily been my closest friend over the years, so I found this really challenging. But… it had an unexpected impact on me.
It gave me life-changing clarity.
It gave me an opportunity to put the experiences of my stories into context, and to see how they shaped who I thought I was, thought I should be, and who I thought everyone else was.
And yeesh, had I been wrong about so much!
This led me to the work I do now…
-To Unstorying.
-To shadow work.
-To helping others see and understand those stories.
-To shining lights into the darkness that descends when our stories get too thick.
Life looks so different now.
And yes, my stories still operate under the surface.
And yes, they still pop up to say hi and bring emotion and reactivity and try to derail me because they think they are protecting me from old stuff.
But I would never go back to before.
It has all led to this. And I am so very grateful for it all. And I am doubly grateful to be witness to the transformative effect of this work on clients.
Please reach out if you are ready to begin!
Minding the Story 