M.Sc.S., Reg. CASLPO
WRITER
Published Author and Social Media Blogger
A few years ago, at 44 years of age, I recognized that my life was unraveling. My marriage wasn't working. I was spending a big part of my mornings in slow, frustrating work commutes. I was constantly exhausted, trying to perfectly juggle my multiple roles - mother, wife, friend, and Speech-Language Pathologist. Despite all the time and energy spent, I felt as though I was constantly failing. I sensed like I was out of solutions on how to make things better.
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With every ending, comes an opportunity to begin anew...
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After my marriage ended, I slowly awoke to the fact that I was lost, and that I had been lost from a very young age. In my quest to survive, to belong, to be accepted, and to be loved, I had contiually repressed my true self. In other words, I had been a chameleon, adjusting my colors to meet all expectations while ignoring my own desires to grow and challenge myself.
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In my journey towards unearthing mySelf, writing became an outlet for which I could safely self-express. I remembered memories of a young girl writing songs, poems, and stories that reminded me and encouraged me to explore this creative outlet.
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In the summer 2021, I started doing something uncomfortable. I wrote about my journey in a social media blog with the intention that it might offer hope and support to others undergoing a similar healing journey. Since then, I have continued to challenge myself by stepping out of comfort into discomfort. Doing this has opened many doors, including that of co-author for which I've documented part of my journey in two published books.
PUBLISHED AUTHOR
HONEST AS A MOTHER
COLLECTIVE STORIES ABOUT THE UNTOLD EXPERIENCES IN MOTHERHOOD
October 17, 2022
HONEST AS A MOTHER is a collection of stories on motherhood - discussing the good, the bad, and everything in between. It was created in the hopes that mothers reading it wouldn't feel alone.
Imperfect Mother shares my journey as a woman and mother who, like many others, lost herself while striving to execute her numerous roles perfectly. I tackle society's harmful expectations of women which, despite slowly changing, continue to be deeply interwoven and embedded in our current collective, creating unrealistic "super mom" norms. Finally, I describe how the application of mindful self-compassion helped to release my perfectionist ways, leading to self-acceptance and self-love.
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DESERTS TO MOUNTAINTOPS
OUR COLLECTIVE JOURNEY TO (RE)CLAIMING OUR VOICE
January 25 2023
DESERTS TO MOUNTAINTOPS is an anthology of women’s voices, chronicling their unique journey from the desert of self-abandonment to the mountaintop of self-love. Each chapter focuses on one woman’s specific story that recounts how she has reestablished a relationship with her intuition, reconnected with her truest self and experienced the hard-won joy of reclaiming her VOICE.
JOURNEY HOME explores my path from self-abandonment to authenticity. Join me as I describe how I chose to turn obstacle into opportunity, with my first big lesson being in letting go that which I could not control. Little did I know the liberating impact this first step would have on the rest of my life, opening the door to opportunities I could never have imagined possible.
What people are saying about DESERTS TO MOUNTAINTOPS
Amanda Gurman
Author and Podcaster
This chapter is SO powerful. I love that Nathalie highlights her struggles but also showcases them in such a way that you can really feel the beauty in them. This chapter made me feel empowered and so proud to be a woman and to say that Nathalie is my friend. This book will showcase the beauty in the grey of being a woman, and that we can go through hard things and still come out the other side better because of it.
Katie Wicik
Leaves the reader with a sense of agency to ignite a fire in their own lives.
I only wish the earlier version of myself could have read this years ago. It can be read as an act of self-care and recovery, to navigate a way forward. By the authors discovering and ultimately sharing their own voices they take the reader down a path which holds space for the complexity of feminine voices, often silenced in the larger narrative. It takes the reader on a journey through the power of collective feminine narratives while inviting a space for the reader to lean into their own vulnerabilities, in an attempt to diminish the shame and guilt surrounding the expectations of the “good enough” woman, Mother and wife, and ultimately the trickle down effect this has on the relational aspects of all our lives. It leaves the reader with a sense of agency to ignite a fire in their own lives.
Kimberley Madore
Honest, Powerful and Inspirational!
The candid storytelling and realization that you don’t have to be perfect was a highlight for me. I can relate to losing myself in the endless list of demands when you have a career, family, husband. As you read, you will smile and nod your head because something in the story will relate to you. The biggest message is that you have the power to change the course of your life. During the Chapter, My Journey Home, there are some great mindfulness tips that you should try! Read it. Pass it on. You will love it.