A Little of My Story
I am often asked the question “how did you get into this line of work?” so I thought I would take a moment to share how I came to be where I am today.
THE BEGINNING ~ I was born and raised on Hornby Island, a small gulf island off the coast of Vancouver Island.
In 1987 when I was born, Hornby was occupied by people who were saying NO to societal norms and living how they pleased. Folks were farming, sharing in communal food coops, dance parties at the most epic community hall imaginable, holding improbable fundraisers, having home births, raising each other’s children, protesting, loving, creating art, building their own homes, enjoying potlucks at the nude beach (Little Tribune Bay) and so much more.
REAL HIPPIES! Completely counter-culture, working collectively and creating lives that were in alignment with their values. I was born at home surrounded by all my mother’s Doula/Midwives/Friends. It was a radical time. Hornby was a safe, free place filled with heart and soul. I have memories of being barefoot all summer long, skimboarding at the beach, wandering in the forest alone or taking my horses on long trail rides over the mountain.
I was a sensitive child, which led to me developing a vivid imagination and strong intuition. My mother is a wild and skilled gardener/homesteader, often creating herbal magic like salves and garlic braids and selling them at the local market. Her best friend is an Acupuncturist and my god mother is a yoga teacher and midwife. You could say I came to this work naturally as it was my foundation. My childhood was encircled by alternative ways of being, music, art, medicine, and healing. Like most childhoods, it had its fair share of painful experiences that imprinted my developing nervous system.
YOUNG ADULTHOOD ~ I was seeking ways to integrate those hard experience and regulate the imprint of trauma within my body. I discovered SURFING and it changed everything. Yoga and Acupuncture were also great helpers on this path. The quest for self-healing brought me to many countries and cultures seeking to understand existence, driven by a deep desire to serve humanity and insatiable curiosity to explore the edges of reality and the body's capacity. I didn’t know what a spiritual quest was until I realized I was on one in when listening to a monk speak in Thailand and then reading a book on Buddhism from my host family’s bookshelf in New Zealand.
After spending time in Australia and Indonesia I was completely hooked on Surfing. I was always a water woman, and this was my perfect way of relating with this powerful elemental force. From the first moments, I loved the sensation in my body that I had no words for until I learned about processing stress hormones and trauma. The buoyancy, sense of total freedom, presence, and physicality continues to serve my entire being. It is my medicine.
EARLY 20’s ~ Were spent globe-trotting and studying. Including seven months in India at an Ashram and Orphanage, road trips to Baja, California, and central America. I took a course in College that was called HOLISTIC HEALTHY & HEALING. We studied many alternative healing modalities. When we covered the chapter on Chinese medicine, I had that whole body shivers feeling when you know you are in the presence of truth and potentially your life will never be the same. For me this was real and felt like destiny. I took the long road to Chinese medicine school, following my endless curiosity studying Yoga, moving to California, and going to Massage school. Likely because I needed all those experiences to be ready to fully commit to 5+ years of focused study.
My time in California was filled with experiences that stretched me to my capacity. When I returned home, my heart was processing at lot. I was losing my best friend to brain cancer and life wasn't making much sense. That was when I started going by my first given name, Melody. Until that time, I was called by friends and family, Nicole which is my given middle name. But that is a long story for another time.
EDUCATION ~ When I returned from California, I enrolled at Pacific Rim College and started the journey of Chinese Medicine. I had a very clear vision while in an Acupuncture session in California of myself today as a practitioner. That vision kept my wings floating through the trials of standard education and endless licensing exams as well as learning to run a business.
This is a short version of my journey into Chinese Medicine, Acupuncture, Yoga and Massage.
Thank you for caring enough to ready this and for sharing the path with me.
Keep following your dreams, even when it doesn’t make sense, or you feel stuck and/or your heart is hurting. Find your medicine and be with it regularly. We all find our way somehow.
