About me
Traveling through life
I'm driven by curiosity, energized by kindness, guided by nature and inspired by stories. Stories about people, their lives and thoughts, stories about faraway places, cultures, and dreams. Stories with a deeper meaning, stories touching my heart, stories spreading compassion and love.
To me, life is a journey, and we're all just traveling through it. Sometimes I feel I've already lived 50 lives in my 38 year old existence. But I wouldn't want it any other way. I love the change, and the new perspectives that come with it.
With a suitcase full of flowers
I'm a (day)dreamer, a sunset chaser, bookworm, an experience collector, an animal lover, a mental health and human rights advocate, an introvert, a highly sensitive person, a romantic at heart, a storyteller, a believer in good, hoping to bring a touch of sunshine during cloudy times but mostly, I'm a firm believer we can make this world a better place through (self)compassion, kindness, empathy and authentic connections.
That's why I love to travel, meet inspiring people, and have the privilege of walking alongside clients' journeys. I want to hear the stories behind their way of living, activism, book, family, or initiative. I want to listen to people's vision, ideas, values, way of thinking, and doing. But I also want to listen to what keeps them awake at night: doubt, pain, trial and error, complexity, and resistance.
And promises intended to keep
As a single mom and director of a company trying to do everything perfect and take care of everybody except myself, I got burned out when I was 30 years old. I literally couldn't get out of bed anymore and spend 1,5y sleeping on my sofa because my body was too exhausted to get up the stairs. During the lowest point of my burnout, I promised myself two things:
1. To never betray myself again. To live authentically and accordingly to my values. Even if that meant leaving everything and everyone that felt familiar.
2. To help others through the same thing once I was healed and give back unconditionally.
Why?
Feeling like I wasn't alone helped me get through it... a bit of understanding through stories, therapy, and art.
The kindness of strangers, coupled with the expertise of professionals and the inspiring stories of those who had been through rough times themselves, gave me the much-needed hope to keep going.
That's why I decided to work as a therapist, and to share my thoughts on this blog while figuring life in recovery out myself. It's what Jung refers to as 'the wounded healer' (feel free to read into Yungs' archetypes).
Some facts about me
Born
In 1986, Belgium
Values
Authenticity, integrity, freedom, curiosity, empathy, connection
Studies & Profession
Bachelor in Clinical Psychology,
working as a therapist
MBTI type
I highly recommend this test. It's based on the archetypes of Yung and I find it truly insightful.
Family
Married
Mother of a 13y old son
HSP?
HSS - High Sensation Seeker
(it's a subtype of HSP: highly sensitive person)
Curious about yourself? You can take a test here :)
