My Journey to Recovery
Knowing the way out because I have walked the path to recovery myself.
I have twice experienced severe burnout.
— A Vicious Cycle —
First Collapse & Unexplained Pain
My journey into mind-body work began out of necessity.
Over the course of my life, I have twice experienced severe burnout where debilitating physical symptoms followed long periods of emotional and physical overwhelm.
My first burn-out followed the challenging life shifts of losing my mother and simultaneously navigating early parenthood. My body reached a point where it could no longer tolerate the stress, and stepped in to stop the process with a wave of confusing, unexplainable physical symptoms; profound chronic fatigue followed by severe, relentless arm pain that started inexplicably after I banged my elbow hard on a metal radiator.
Lost, alone, and confused, I spent months navigating medical appointments that offered a string of structural diagnoses—ranging from tennis elbow to Marfan Syndrome—none of which made sense or brought relief. I had a feeling that something far more interconnected was at play—a common thread running through separate symptoms that conventional medicine was attempting to address in isolation.
I had an instinctive sense that my physical responses were deeply tied to ongoing stress and a lack of a safe outlet to process my emotions. But I had no framework for understanding what that connection actually was. My body had seemingly turned against me, and the more I searched for answers, the more I realised how little I understood about what was happening inside. I knew I needed to try something different.
Mindfulness & Partial Recovery
I was introduced to mindfulness practice, which resonated and made immediate sense to me. I integrated it into my daily life, which brought significant recovery and valuable self-knowledge.
However, mindfulness alone did not help me grasp the neural mechanisms at play. Without that foundational understanding of how my nervous system was operating, I was well enough to cope, but my recovery remained incomplete and vulnerable to future setbacks.
Years later, the acute stress of the Covid lockdowns triggered a second, more severe collapse.
Chronic Crisis & Structural Dead-Ends
What began as an acute urinary tract infection spiralled into nearly three years of unrelenting physical pain and exhaustion that stayed with me night and day. I felt trapped in a body that seemed broken. I moved from one medical specialist to another; undergoing endless tests that didn’t explain my experience and trying every alternative approach and treatment available.
Nothing worked, and my life began to collapse. Unable to sit or concentrate, I was forced onto long-term leave from my job. Severe side-effects from medication and extreme restrictive diets stripped away the basic comforts of sleep and eating, while the strain pushed my relationship to breaking point. I felt trapped and I needed to find a way out…
I felt trapped in a body that seemed broken.
— The Recovery Process —
Getting Scientific About My Own Healing
Finding myself in a very dark place, I realised I had a choice. I could either give up, or take a scientific approach to finding a way out.
As a researcher, I formed a clear view of my own experience and observations. Literally no physical treatment was working and, yet, people with similar chronic symptoms were recovering in unexpected ways.
I decided to treat myself as an experiment, letting go of the exhausting pressure to find a complete cure, which did not appear to exist. I read many biographies about recovery from difficult health conditions, asking myself: “How are they doing this?” I attended conferences and read scientific literature about treating chronic infections. And I adopted the open mindset that any tiny positive possibility was worth exploring further— a 10% or even 5% reduction in symptoms or improvement in my moment-to-moment experience could bring much-needed relief and help me cope.
I made myself write down every single thing that had ever helped anyone, no matter how unlikely.
Unlocking the Mind-Body Connection
This open-mindedness prepared me to discover the mind-body approach.
When I first learned how the nervous system creates real physical pain and symptoms—perpetuating these long after the original threat has passed in response to on-going fear and stress—I struggled to believe it, it was too good to be true. I found myself swinging wildly between two extremes: an overwhelming rush of hope that this was finally my way out, and a lurch of fear in trusting this after years of suffering and failures. Yet, deep down, I knew this finally made sense.
Supported by my coach, Gigi Cockell—who would guide me to recovery and now supports me as my supervisor—and anchored by my fifteen years of mindfulness practice, I gradually made progress. The breakthrough came in fully internalising the understanding that my brain’s protective mechanism was operating automatically below my conscious awareness, continuing to create pain signals in response to overwhelm and eventually out of habit. And that the problem was not the pain, but the fear of it, which was paradoxically keeping my brain’s protective mechanism going.
Step by step, my nervous system learned how to feel safe again.
Full Recovery & Practice Mission
Today, I am free from all those chronic symptoms. I lead an active lifestyle, with no restrictions, no off-limits activities, and no lingering pain.
I feel incredibly fortunate to bring my personal experience of recovery, alongside my scientific background to guide others along their own path back to a full life free of pain.
My Approach
Hopefully now you have more of an understanding about who I am and how I came to be a coach.
You can learn more about my background and approach to pain and wellbeing coaching and how it can help you…
Ready to Take the Next Step?
Every meaningful journey starts with one brave step.
If you’re curious about how I can support you, book your free initial consultation today, and let’s take that first step toward a pain-free life.