Hey love,
I’m Jillian
I’m supposed to tell you a summary of all of what makes me legit and fancy enough to sell you something. But that’s not how I roll. I could sit and rattle off a list of all of my education, qualifications, and credentials, but that’s pretty basic and not my vibe anyhow.
Sure, I’ve done lots of fancy things. And was in school for way too long. But that’s not really going to tell you a whole lot.
What I will tell you is that I’ve been a human for 40 years.
I’m a trauma survivor and granddaughter of trauma survivors. I feel the remnants of past pain deep in my bones. The upside? I can read energy really fucking well. The upside of survival after trauma. Being ridiculously tuned in. All the damn time.
+ Credentials
- Bachelor of Science in Psychology from North Central University, Minneapolis, MN , 2003.
- Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology from Bethel University, St. Paul, MN, 2005.
- Doctor of Psychology in Counseling Psychology, University of St. Thomas, Minneapolis, MN, 2011.
- Certified Intrinsic Coach, Totally Coached, Incorporated. 2007.
- Reiki Master, Coon Rapids, MN, 2020.
- 230-hr Holistic Yoga Teacher Training, Yoga Sanctuary, Minneapolis, MN, 2019
- 500-hr Yoga Teacher Training, Brett Larkin Uplifted Yoga, 2020
- 500-level Registered Yoga Teacher with Yoga Alliance
How does one briefly summarize a lifelong journey?
Half a lifetime’s professional evolvement?
“ Set yourself free from the limitations of your own mind. And the patriarchy. Let’s get that shit out of our heads too. Together we can accomplish what individually would be impossible. Let’s do this.”
MIND
I’ve spent most of my life in my head, trying to avoid the discomfort of being inside my own skin. This worked out super well in a culture that values head over heart, brain over body, “rational” thought over an embodied, deep sense of knowing. I apparently liked being in my head so much I went on to obtain a doctorate in psychology.
I’ve not only spent way too much time in my own head, I have been privileged to enter the sacred inner minds and hearts of thousands of clients over the course of the past 20 years. My clients have by far been my greatest teachers and I have considered it a great honor to hold space for them.
I think and see things in terms of patterns, threads of similarity, weaving and creating meaning and sense out of the seemingly meaningless depth of suffering that the human spirit can withstand. My superpower is seeing potential. Underneath all the layers of life experiences that have dulled our brightness. And I am passionate AF about bringing forth that deepest part of you to the forefront. Because this is how the world changes. One human heart at a time. Let’s work on that mindset.
BODY
I’ve struggled with anxiety for virtually all of my life. With bouts of seasonal and situational depression sprinkled in. I still daily experience thoughts and feelings related to both. I’ve also spent my life on a quest to feel better. To evolve and improve on myself to make being in my mind, body, and spirit less painful. Yet living life exclusively to eradicate pain is not fulfilling. We feel most alive when we have an active flow of energy streaming out of us. Not when we are contracted in, hiding, trying to stop feeling anything at all.
Never have a felt more at home in my body as when I found yoga. I’ve been practicing now for two decades.
The more and more I specialized in trauma specifically as a mental health therapist, the more aware I became that we needed to be talking less and moving more. With intentionality. So I pivoted. I am a 500-level trained yoga teacher with Yoga Alliance (the international credentialing body for yoga teachers) and also a Reiki Master. I have been leading and teaching meditation both individually and in groups for over 15 years and I have been teaching yoga for the past 6 years. I have also been trained as a certified intrinsic coach and worked for several years in grad school as a health and wellness coach. Coaching naturally aligns with my style and has always been a part of how I work.
SPIRIT
I have always been drawn to the spiritual and metaphysical realms. I am highly intuitive. When I was three I told my mom that she was pregnant with my brother before she knew it. And I was right. But I grew up within very conservative Christianity and intuition was the last thing that I was supposed to be bringing into the world. So I kept my insights and wisdom to myself. And these qualities were not nurtured in me. Yet I’ve always stayed connected inside.
I’m also an empath. Which means that I essentially feel in my body what others are feeling in theirs. When someone shares a traumatic story, I literally can picture it vividly in my head and then feel the effects of it in my body. This had been overwhelming for most of my life, until I learned to harness these skills to help heal others.
I conceptualize spirituality as a very broad construct. Essentially anything that connects us to the feeling that we are not alone, that we are a part of something bigger than ourselves, that which gives us meaning, purpose, a deep sense that we belong here. I am comfortable working with just about any belief system as long as it is in line with restoring justice, eliminating systems of oppression, and elevating you to your highest calling.
TRANSFORMATION
I quit my last traditional therapy job in October 2019. I had been working in a toxic clinic setting that was abusive, gaslighting hell. After trying to make things work for way too long in a system that devalues the hell out of emotional labor and wanted clinicians to see more and more clients as if we worked on an assembly line. Things became so awful at my last job that I eventually became suicidal. Because I felt so trapped. So I took a ginormous, scary leap of faith and quit the hellish job. And then proceeded to completely fall apart. This is where I met my highest self. Deep in the quiet of the woods when I felt broken and anxious and fragile as can be. When spirit shows up to catch you when you feel like you might just freefall forever. But I caught the wind. And learned to soar. At least I’m learning and striving towards this each day at a time.
Because sometimes we need to be cracked wide open to evolve.
