Hello! My name is Elise and I am so glad you are here. I wanted to take this opportunity to introduce myself and talk about some of my passions.
My mantra is, “leave things better than you found them.” Whether that means wiping something that has been spilled, attempting to bridge communication gaps, or smiling at a stranger, I want my impact on this world to be as positive as possible. With this being said, throughout my life, I have always been in search of the truth. The truth sometimes makes things worse before it can make things better. Discovering the truth can be a painful, scary and life-altering process. But, I am doggedly devoted to the truth. With an Aquarius sun and a Scorpio moon, I am constantly consumed with aspiring to make the world a better place, while digging deeper into the reasons why people experience so much suffering. It is my belief that when we know what causes suffering in our lives, we will do what we can to change it, to make our world a better place, and hopefully the world of those we love will get better as well. Positive impact all around, while going through some trials and tribulations on the way.
I came to this place of needing to improve and understanding what is true as a survivor of trauma. I have consistently peeled back layers to understand my mental health. While this has been and continues to be painful, it is necessary if I am to be free. For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to rise above my circumstances, and the judgement I put on my circumstances, and have a life worth living. With this in mind, I became an LCSW (Licensed Clinical Social Worker). My main focus was to help children who were suffering to become aware of these patterns and help them make informed decisions about who they want to show up as in the world. In my clinical work, I taught children healthy coping skills, social and emotional skills, and communication. I discovered that a great modality for this was mindfulness. I began to practice mindfulness myself and teach it to children and families. While looking for great books to teach children about mindfulness, I decided to write my own. More info on that TBA. However, after all this work, I found myself depleted, disheartened and burned out.
I took time away from clinical work. I detached (classic Aquarius) and listened to podcasts, watched movies, and had low-stress jobs. But my Scorpio moon still needed to be fulfilled, and started looking through the ‘gram for inspiration. Through all this digging, I came across mindset work. This is something I could really sink my teeth into. Through this work and learning from some awesome mindset coaches via podcasts, I found out about the power we have over the mind. While there are circumstances that are outside of our control, we always have control over how we choose to think about our circumstances. I felt very empowered by the idea that I could influence my life by focusing on my thoughts and my feelings. I could change my experience of my life by choosing to think a different thought about what was going on around me. When I discovered this, I knew I had to share it with as many people as I could. I have begun teaching workshops on visualization and mindfulness in the City of Richmond (see Events Calendar for dates and locations).
Thank you so much for joining me on this journey. I look forward to shedding light on topics ranging from children’s mindset, parenting roles, family dynamics and how families can heal the world.
