And the day came when the risk to remain tight in the bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom. 

~ Anais Nin

When I lived in France on the Riviera it was often said ‘We’re living the dream people’.

Which in all honesty we were. Days were spent working alongside friends who became family, lounging at the beach – before work, after work, on days off, meeting folk from all over the world, drinking cheap booze together. In your mid 20’s this is living the dream. To be fair, in my 30’s this is still living the dream. Although the cheap booze isn’t ideal any more.

This idea of ‘Living the Dream’ is the driving force behind why we get up in the morning – and stay up. Or at least it should be. The reality of living your heart’s desire is intoxicating. I believe each one of us is here to live the exact opposite of mediocre. To be inspired daily to live our dreams, to access our truth + potential, to be connected to our purpose – this is why we get up and stay up.

To inspire you to live your own version of ‘Living the Dream’ I’m going to be interviewing a bunch of my clients doing just this. My clients (who I have the honour and privilege of working with) commit to their potential, to living consciously, responsibly and spiritually. 

Which is where Kinesiology comes in. This uber powerful therapy helps you get clear on your desires + passions and importantly kicks your subconscious blocks in the butt, forcing you to face your fears and annihilate your anxieties. 

But enough with the alliteration – Kinesiology works and it’s part of the reason these amazing people are living their dream.

So without further adieu… Meet Jenna.

Jenna Verhoeven:: Naturopath + Phlebotomist :: 30 :: City of Sydney :: Naturopathic consultations at Body Mind Life, Sydney CBD, and Phlebotomist for Australian Red Cross Blood Bank :: Bachelor of Fine Arts UWS, Adv. Dip. Nat Nature Care College.

You’re living the dream. What does this look like for you? (Describe what you do for a crust). And how long have you been doing it for? 

I currently have two loaves baking away in the kiln. My work as a Naturopath is my primary Purpose + Passion. It sees me in private consultation, helping people to help themselves; empowering them, supporting them, allowing them to take their health into their own hands. It is this role that also allows my creative side to roam; writing and creating, to further inspire people to explore a different way to approach their health. Mixing up lotions and potions and teas, allowing my inner alchemist the opportunity to flourish! My secondary role, with the Blood Bank, enables me to help those who wish to help others. It’s a great position within the greater community, allowing me to connect with people from diverse walks of life.

Were you scared to take the leap of faith? How did it happen? Can you describe the feeling you experienced? Your mental state of being? Emotions?

I think we all take many leaps (steps, hops) of faith throughout our lives. Some knowingly, some less so. When you knowingly take a leap of faith, a step into the void, a pre-launch exhalation, there is always a combination of emotions. Fear is definitely one of them; along with doubt, questioning. 

I have always been a bit of a leaper. Doing things that are a little scary, but knowing that NOT doing them is even scarier. The leap to become a Naturopath actually took two attempts. Upon my first leap, I rapidly crashed down; it was the timing that was off/wrong, but I originally took it as ME being wrong, my DREAM being wrong.

The second leap was more successful. I felt ready. I had ignored my dreams for too long. Just prior to leaping was full of feelings of denial and depression, lots of cynicism and anger; everything felt like it was a fight or a battle. Taking a leap of faith is like ‘letting go’, trusting in yourself and the Universe. It’s scary, but it is also liberating.

It started as a non-thought; literally me saying, when getting a compliment for a massage/backrub I had given whilst back-packing, ‘thanks, I’m thinking of doing reflexology….’. I had NEVER thought of doing that, it just rolled out of my mouth. As I travelled, and spent time with more friends and family, the idea just grew. I wanted to help, I wanted to help HEAL. I wanted to make people feel the same way I had felt when I saw a Naturopath for the first time ever in my late teens on a whim. It all culminated whilst staying with family in Albuquerque (one of the most spiritual places in which I have spent time); I had solidified what I wanted, how to live my dream.

Then, when I came home, I set about getting a job ’that pays the bills’, moving to Sydney, spending my weekends at parties or the pub. I moved further and further away from my dream, and unsurprisingly, I got more and more in a black hole. The voice got louder and louder, telling me, ‘I have more to offer this world’ than what I was doing. I spent more time daydreaming, researching, reading, dabbling. When the desire to do, when the call to action was greater than the content to be complacent, I knew it was time to act on following my dreams, and bringing them into fruition.

The great thing about living the dream, and moving towards my calling, is that; unlike football, where the goal posts don’t move, dreams can evolve. Reinvention, evolution, redrawing over the pencil lines with a Sharpie, It is exciting when you are living amidst what you have created from your dreams.

I started Kinesiology in my final year of Naturopathy training. I was scared about the ‘what next?’ and the ‘how to’s?’, along with all the anxieties of exams and clinical practice. Now that I am out and practicing, there are still hiccups and anxieties and blocks that can arise. Some are work related, some to do with personal relationships; and then there are some things which just bubble up out of nowhere, and leave me feeling a little bit blah.

I refer to Kinesiology as ‘No Bulls*#t counselling’. I have been to counsellors in the past, who I respect and believe they practice with the greatest good in mind; but left me just waffling and wading. I’d go back week after week, dredging up things from the past, writing letters to ex-boyfriends and school yard bullies who had caused me pain, and dwelling in things, instead of sifting through them and dealing with them. I never felt LISTENED to, or like I was MOVING FORWARD.

Kinesiology is different; you get in there, you shake it all about. You get to the crux of the problem, even if it’s not what you thought it was; but then the best bit is, you get thrown a rope. You get shown a way to help yourself out of your rut, your funk. 

Kinesiology feels like a collaborative effort to sort yourself out, between your physical self, your subconscious/mental/emotive self, Clare, and who/whatever is invited and present. It’s this ‘team effort’ that makes you want to get up and over whatever is causing a bit of a stumble. There is a shift within relatively quickly; I truly believe that is because most of the time we already know what we need to do, we just need a bit of a kick or affirmation that we are right. I go back to Kinesiology when things are hairy and bubbling to my surface, because I know it works for me.

We all get off track at times. Fears creep back in. Resistance gets a hold of us. Inspiration doesn’t strike. What do you do to stay on track? What gets you back to centre? Is it people? Things? Philosophies? Yoga? 

I am lucky to have some very supportive and grounding people in my life, not only that, but they each have a different way of viewing problems and setbacks, thus I get a diverse range of feedback from a small handful of people. Sitting and chatting over a cup of coffee with a tasty treat always helps to re-align my wheels, I also find that because I am a visual person, I like to draw up mind maps of my ‘game-plan’;’ Where was I going, where am I now, what are some of the things I can do to get me where to want to be?’ Sometimes these maps just become a collection of doodles and boxes with arrows; they are just as much about creative outlet as practical tactics.

Also, honestly without bias, I turn to Kinesiology when all my tried and true methods of realignment aren’t working, or I’m just not getting the message clear enough. It helps just to solidify, tap-in, and affirm. 

Who do you talk to? God/ Universe/ Angels/ Saints/Trees/All of the above? Can you describe your relationship with your spirituality? How does this contribute to you living the dream?

I talk to the Universe, to the Unconscious Collective, to the Greater Knowledge; but more importantly LISTEN to these guides. This includes the trees, the secret messages in feathers, vivid dreams, and memories/conversations held with loved ones no longer physically present. My relationship with my spirituality has always been quite fluid, in a constant state of flux and permeability. There have been times when I have struggled with my spirituality, not fully understanding it, frustrated at its intangibility and seemingly lack of accessibility. It is those times, when I have struggled the most, which I have truly lost sight with where I want to be heading in life, with my living the dream. 

I feel that as I get older, and more comfortable with my spirituality, my passion + purpose becomes clearer. I also feel that it this open dialogue with the Universe helps to encourage my dreams, helps shape them and form them with greater clarity.

What’s one or two hard truths about taking the risk to blossom. What do people need to be aware of? 

At the risk of scaring readers, one of the hard truths about taking the risk to blossom; is that it’s bloody hard work. It’s hard work that you will enjoy doing, but it’s still hard. I look at flowers and think, ‘geez, they make it look easy, just blooming despite the rain or cold.’ But then I remember that many factors had to be working together to make it happen. Taking the risk to blossom required you to put all those factors together.

The second truth is, be prepared to leave people behind. As I have been working towards my dream, I have had to leave behind people who aren’t supportive, or don’t believe, or aren’t willing to expand as well. I’m not saying to leave behind friends because they have a difference of opinion to your dream; but I want only people who will help me blossom to be around. Likewise, I hope those who mean so much to me in a supportive role, get reciprocal encouragement and nourishment from me. I don’t want to be the only flower in my flowerbed, I want all my budding blooms to be bursting too!

What soulful advice do you have for those reading this, who too desire to live a life of purpose + passion?

Stop struggling against it. I think so much mental and physical dis-ease is caused when we don’t follow what we truly believe our paths to be. When I ignored my purpose + passion, the further I walked away from it, the messier and more complicated my life got. When you start to align yourself, it’s like you wake up. Things feel fresher, things are exciting. Whether it be a leap, or the first baby step, I think you just need to start moving towards it and have faith in yourself. I truly feel blessed to be living my dream, and think that you deserve to be living you purpose + passion too.

“For the months of July-September: Initial consult + 1st follow-up for $145, a saving of 25%, to ensure you’re on the path to healing!”

***

Connect with Jenna via www.jvnaturopathy.com / jvnaturopathy@gmail.com
 and on Instagram @jvnaturopathy

Everyone’s dream is different. Have an insatiable curiosity about yours.
It’s time to blossom.

 

 

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