Annie's Story
Do you ever recall a moment in your life when time stood still and in that moment, everything changed? You know things will never again be the same.
When I had just turned 16, my father became mysteriously ill, was diagnosed with cancer and within the span of 2 short months, he died. I was devastated. I lost my best friend. I felt completely alone. While my dad was ill, my father's two sisters taught my family how to meditate in the hospital waiting room. I loved meditation and the profound peace I could find just by sitting quietly. That skill saw me through many tough moments in life.
Always aspiring to something bigger, I became Canada's first in-house marketing executive in a Canadian teaching hospital, a world traveler and married an eye surgeon. Despite this success there was this aching feeling in my heart and soul, a sense that I was missing something. I wanted my life to be fulfilling and exciting. I wanted to know that I made a difference in the world.
By 1987, my yearning for Self-knowledge could no longer be contained. I had a one-month holiday from the hospital, and off I went to India. One year later, I gave everything away (which I do not recommend) including the doctor husband (I have since remarried a wonderful man who is a musician and web/graphic designer), and ended up living in the Himalayan Mountains of India for seven years where I became a certified instructor in the Science of Yoga, Vedant Philosophy and the Theory and Practice of Meditation.
One day, on my way down an icy Indian mountain, I lost my footing and fell off a 20 foot cliff. A well-meaning but ill-educated "chiropractor" in India attempted to adjust my back and I ended up with 4 herniated discs. My medical advisors in India prescribed bed rest, but after six months, I lost sensation in my legs. I had to return to Canada to seek professional medical care. I came home in a wheel chair. As an active athletic individual, it was one of the scariest times of my life.
What I Have Learned
Returning from India was not easy. After a year of rehabilitation of consulting doctors, physiotherapists, osteopaths, healers and surgeons, I realized I had to dig deep to understand the emotional issues underlying my health. As I learned to become present with my body, to love and cherish it and most of all, to acknowledge the messages it is always sending, I regained my full ability to move. I struggled to understand my place within the seemingly separate worlds of mind, body and spirit. The beauty of time is that it brings wisdom and healing. I realized that my challenge was to learn how to integrate these worlds. I learned that the body speaks to us in a whisper and that if we ignore this whisper, it will try again with a push. If we still ignore the push, it hits us with a two by four. My learning was to stay very present, to listen carefully within to the whisper I now recognize as intuition. I pay close attention to this precious temple called my body, as it is my only tool to go through life. I learned to respect it and love it. This challenge evolved into a gift as I learned how to bring a sense of oneness, connection, impact, awe and appreciation of life together with the practical and material world of business. Today I bring that gift into my clients' lives as a life and executive coach.
After more than 25 years of intensive study, teaching and personal practice, I have learned how to trust myself, how to re-open my heart, which I had shut down because of old hurts and disappointments. I learned how to be quiet enough to hear my inner voice, to turn up the volume of my intuition. I made a decision to never again sacrifice my inner Self and to be authentic at all times. I realized that if I wanted my life to change, I would have to start by recognizing and acknowledging my role in the aspects of my life that made me unhappy. If I didn't like the way things were in my life, no one else was going to change them for me and no one else was responsible for making me happy - not my husband, not my job, not my family. So if there was going to be some change, I had to make it happen myself.
I have learned that in order to live my life in harmony and peace, I must live in genuine expression of my authentic Self. I learned that internal conflict happens when there is a fundamental belief that if you show the world who you really are, you will be rejected. Through my coaching, you learn how to shed light on the shadow aspects of yourself that you have disowned and integrate them without judgment so that you can once again be whole.
My Philosophy
I have devoted my life to personal evolution and to helping others realize their greatest potential, so they, too, can fulfill their life goals and not have regrets of 'if only I had the courage.'
I believe we are here on Earth for a reason. Whatever difficulty presents itself in your life is an opportunity to learn about yourself. What if, instead of resisting these situations and circumstances, you could see them as opportunities? What if you knew that every moment of your life, you are creating your life, that you become what you believe and whatever you put your attention on. Everything you do begins with your intention. Your intention forms your thoughts and your thoughts shape your action. Every action has a reaction. When you take responsibility for your choices and actions, you become aware of your role in creating your life. If you want a different life, then make different choices. When we move into intention, we create conscious living.
Imagine. Find out who you really are, what your special gifts are. We have only to uncover these gifts and then have the courage to express and live them. My role as a coach is to assist my clients in uncovering those gifts and then support their journey of self-discovery as a dream becomes their reality.