My Story

I Know What It Feels Like to Believe the Pain Will Never End.

I walked through all of it. What I found on the other side changed everything.

Chapter One

The Wound

I grew up in Appalachian West Virginia, where the mountains were beautiful and the pain was hidden. My childhood was marked by trauma that no child should carry, abuse that taught me before I could even name it that the world wasn't safe, that I wasn't safe.

I did what many wounded people do. I learned to survive. I built walls. I became tough on the outside and shattered on the inside. For a long time, that was enough to get by.

Getting by isn't living.

"I was so broken that I couldn't see the pieces anymore. Something in me refused to stop breathing."
Chapter Two

The Descent

The pain I carried led me where unhealed pain always leads. It led to anything that would make it stop, even for a moment. Drugs. Alcohol. Food. Relationships that mirrored the chaos I already knew. I self-sabotaged in every way a person can, because when you believe you're broken, you build a life that proves it.

There were moments when I didn't want to be alive. I'm not saying that for sympathy. I'm saying it because if you're in that place right now, I need you to know: I was there too. I'm still here.

The bottom was real. It was also the place where something shifted.

Chapter Three

The Turning Point

Recovery didn't happen overnight. It happened one choice at a time. One day at a time. I entered recovery. I went back to school. I earned my degree in Psychology, then Theology. I discovered that the spiritual path wasn't separate from the healing path, they were the same road.

I began working in mental health, and something remarkable happened: the skills I was learning to help others were healing me too. Every person I sat with, every story I listened to, showed me another piece of the puzzle. My pain had a purpose. My mess was becoming my message.

I trained in energy healing - Reiki, Kolamani, energetics. I earned certifications and degrees. I became a licensed Massage Therapist. I was ordained. I kept transforming through it all. Not because I was fixed, but because I was finally brave enough to feel.

"If I can do it... you can do it!"
Chapter Four

Building a Life of Service

For over 40 years, I've dedicated my life to helping others find their own turning point. Not through theory, but through real, lived transformation. Soul to soul, heart to heart.

I have written 40 books, which have been published in 3 languages, available in more than 10 countries. Books on grief, anxiety, fear, depression, addiction, chronic illness, spiritual transformation. Each one began as someone's pain and became a guide for someone else's healing.

After September 11th, I served as a consultant to families who had lost loved ones - people drowning in a grief they never imagined. In 1986, I founded the first LGBTQ conference at WVU, because I knew what it meant to be invisible. I've spoken on stages across the country and will soon be speaking in Scotland and Brazil.

Today, I work with people one-on-one from my home in Houston, Texas. Some come to me with grief so heavy they can't stand. Some come with anxiety that has stolen their sleep. Some come because they're tired of being broken and are ready (even if they're scared) to begin.

Credentials & Training

Education & Certifications

  • A.S. in Psychology - 1982
  • B.S. in Psychology & Theology - 1986
  • Licensed Massage Therapist - 2001
  • Reiki Master Teacher - 2002
  • Certified Energetics Practitioner - 2002
  • Kolamani Master Teacher - 2003
  • Ordained Minister - 2004
  • M.S. in Metaphysics - 2022
  • Pursuing Dual Doctorates: Divinity & Metaphysical Psychology - University of Sedona
  • 40+ years in mental health services & spiritual consulting
Recognition
  • Founded the first LGBTQ conference at WVU - 1986
  • Founding Board Member, West Virginia Head Injury Foundation - 1986
  • Who’s Who in American College Students - 1986
  • Board Member, Women’s Aid in Crisis Domestic Violence Shelter, WV - 1987
  • Governor-appointed Advocate for Persons with Disabilities - 1987–1989
  • Post-9/11 Family Consultant - 2002
  • Delaware Women in Business DIVA ACHIEVA - 2005
  • Who’s Who in American Women Entrepreneurs - 2016
Professional Affiliations
Member, Association for Spiritual Integrity
Your Story Matters Too
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