My Story

For much of my life, my relationship with God was the most meaningful and grounding part of who I was. In 2017, I thought I was going to live my dream pursuing vocational ministry.

That same year I felt the word “Surrender” placed on my heart, and I asked God to help me learn how.

Soon after, my life turned upside down. And with it – a lot of unprocessed pain I had stuffed down began surfacing through emotional triggers, anxiety, and overwhelm. I didn’t have language or context for what was happening inside of me, but I started realizing that my usual ways of coping weren’t working anymore.

I tried to logic my way through the pain. I tried to have more faith over my feelings. I tried to fix what felt broken.

While I got temporary relief from these methods, I soon would spiral again. I felt shame that I couldn’t have enough faith. I felt stuck and hopeless. I felt angry, and God just didn’t feel safe a lot of the time like He had before.

I had done traditional talk therapy previously, so I tried it again. While parts of it were supportive, I often felt like I left with more insight than relief. I could name what was happening, but I still didn’t know how to feel safe again in my heart and body or trust again in my relationships with God or others.

What finally started shifting things for me wasn’t just trying harder. It was being met.

Eventually a friend shared The Connected Life podcast with me by Abi and Justin Stumvoll. I remember something clicking in a different way during one of their podcast episodes:

“The emotional triggers I’m facing aren’t just about the present — they’re also revealing places of past pain that are asking for healing.”

In this moment, I felt hope. The way I was reacting wasn’t because I was failing. It actually made sense in the context of my story and the healing I needed.

As I began taking classes, meeting with an emotional health consultant, and eventually training in emotional healing work through Stumvoll Consulting, I experienced something I hadn’t before: attunement, felt safety, and autonomy. Further along on my journey, my own work with licensed therapists trained in IFS, Somatic Experiencing, and Attachment modalities also played a significant role.

Instead of forcing change on the surface, I started having emotionally reparative experiences that changed things at the root.

I learned how to slow down and experience presence in the midst of my pain.
I learned how to support my nervous system and sit with pain without being consumed by it.
I learned how to gain back more autonomy in my life.

I started connecting more with my body and my heart, living out of a more authentic place rather than performance.

In the midst of betrayal, attachment crises, panic, and deep faith wrestling — I slowly started unraveling the beliefs at the root of my pain. I learned to sit with them in the presence of unconditional love — again and again. It wasn’t just a concept, it was an experience. Along the way, I started healing in places I hadn’t even realized were wounded.

Now I get to walk with others as an emotional health consultant, seeing clients experience more love, safety, and freedom in their own emotional healing journeys. It’s different than I ever imagined, and I absolutely love this work.