About Me

Hello!

I am Deb. I am 53 years old and I am on this amazing journey through menopause with you. I have experienced all the ups and downs, ins and outs, just like many of you. I am currently 1 year post menopause and I am striving to live the best and healthiest years of my life long into the future.

This journey has been incredibly enlightening, filled with both challenges and moments of joy that I cherish deeply. I’ve learned not only about my body but also about my mind and spirit. Through this process, I’ve discovered strength I didn’t know I had and connections with others who share similar experiences. It’s a testament to the resilience we all possess, transcending the physical and delving into the emotional transformations we encounter along the way. Through it all, I feel grateful for each moment and every lesson learned, as it shapes not just who I am today, but who I aspire to be tomorrow.

How did I get here?

Real talk, 2025 was arguably the worst year of my life. I found myself in a position I never thought I would be in...a burnt-out fitness professional lacking direction and motivation and headed straight into menopause. As the year unfolded, I had just quit my job at a highly respected yoga studio due to my own personal and professional burnout, and with incredibly poor judgment I immediately took on a small group of people to train in my small private studio at my home. Long story short, this endeavor quickly spiraled into a disaster. With every effort I made to keep things organized and positive, it seemed that things just became more chaotic. I had a few drama fueled clients who were continually not showing up for themselves, and unfortunately were disrupting the workout sessions of others who were there genuinely to improve themselves. Instead of stopping those disruptive behaviors immediately, I allowed them to escalate and I chose to try not to make waves for the comfort of everyone involved. I ended up holding on to the situation way longer than I should have essentially becoming a doormat in my own space. As they say, hindsight is 20/20.

As that group quite literally imploded before my eyes, I was also facing personal relationships abruptly derailing behind the scenes. Several of what I once believed to be my closest and deepest relationships came to an abrupt end due to unnecessary and unforeseen drama. And on top of it, I found out through social media that one of my friends had tragically died fighting for peace in Ukraine. It was as if a storm had swept through, uprooting not just my professional life but my personal connections as well. Once again, hindsight proved to be 20/20, revealing how poorly I had navigated those dynamics and how unaware I had been of the fragile nature of the relationships I had fostered up to that point.

My nervous system was completely shot, leaving me in a constant state of overwhelm. I felt as if I could not breathe. I had no choice but to take a complete hiatus from everything. A complete and utter retreat from my life until I could find a way to heal some very deep and painful wounds. The toll it took on me was immense. I lost months of sleep; I was unable to recover even from the simplest of daily tasks. I was grappling with severe menopause symptoms triggered by the insane stress and unchecked cortisol load my body was under. I made the tough decision to close my studio doors entirely, realizing that this was a necessary and difficult step toward self-preservation.

During that time, I shut myself completely off from friends, not communicating with many of them for months. I didn’t answer texts. I didn’t answer phone calls or emails. I didn’t leave my house other than to complete the necessary errands. The only thing I managed to keep up with was my jiu jitsu training, which offered a temporary escape due to the very long commute it required, which felt like a much-needed escape from it all. I felt grateful for the sanctuary of the mats, where I could leave my sadness behind and regain some semblance of control over my chaotic life. Aside from that, however, this prolonged period of misery quietly extended on for the better part of a year, dragging me further into the dark.

As the months went on, I had to take a very hard look at my life. It was painful and eye-opening. I found myself digging into my soul’s depth, desperately trying to turn things around because I felt as if I was literally dying on the inside. Each day was a battle, and I began to question my worth and place in this world. As a first step to move forward in my healing journey, I turned to reconnect to nature, as it was the only environment where my nervous system could feel even somewhat regulated. Each weekend for many months, I would take long drives into the woods with my husband, fully immersing myself in grounding in nature, allowing it to soothe my weary soul and slowly helping me learn what my new normal would look like.

From that point onward, I began to slowly incorporate additional practices into my life to help me feel more balanced, including grounding, somatic movements, sound baths, more yoga, meditation, and breathwork. I explored different methods, often spending countless hours researching and trying them out until I finally found what truly worked for me. I discovered these alternative paths to be profoundly healing, so much so that I decided to pursue certifications in these areas: 200hr yoga, somatic yoga, and an immersive meditation teacher certification that was more needed than I could have ever imagined. These new certifications began to round out my extensive list of fitness and wellness certifications that I had steadily accumulated over the past decade. My aim was not only to deepen my knowledge but also to harness those lessons to empower and inspire others who may find themselves in similar situations as I had been. And thankfully, I had a few steadfast friends who truly understood that I needed time alone to recuperate, and they patiently waited for me to reemerge like beacons of light at the end of an incredibly long and dark tunnel.

As I started pulling myself together and gradually piecing my life back together, I truly realized that I never wanted to go back to where I was before. That hindsight is a real MFer and it serves as a powerful reminder. I wanted to start putting all of my assets and skills into one cohesive practice. And that is where coaching has come into play, creating a strong network of support and guidance. It makes perfect sense now looking back. I have been a coach in one way or another for over a decade; I just haven’t been able to put all the pieces into play at the same time until now. As a group fitness coach, I could never actually help people achieve their actual goals because the fact is that at least 90% of change happens in the kitchen, not in the gym. Recovery doesn’t happen in the gym either, neither does sleep, or nervous system regulation, or mindset, or self-care, or accountability or habit building...the list goes on and on. Those all happen in the other 23 hours of the day, outside of a fitness context.

Digging in and new growing roots

My passion is to help women go deeper than just getting to a class and calling it a day. I am here to help women make real, lasting change and transform their lives, guiding them towards a journey of holistic wellness and longevity, with their best years ahead of them, rather than behind them, flourishing with vibrancy and health.

My mission is to support and uplift menopausal women so that they can show up as their best, strongest, most vibrant selves, finding joy in movement and peace in their bodies amidst the chaos of life and change.

Together, we can break down the barriers that keep us from thriving; I am dedicated to walking alongside you every step of the way, providing the support, tools, and encouragement we all need to navigate through this incredible journey of health and wellness with confidence and grace.

Love,
Coach Deb 🤎