My story
In 2017, I had a panic attack on my way to work.
It's an ordinary weekday morning in Toronto. My chest tightens, my breath won't settle, and somewhere between home and the office my body decides it has had enough.
On paper, I'm doing well. I lead a Trust & Safety team in tech. I live in one of the city's best neighbourhoods. By every outside measure, I should be thriving.
Inside, I'm overworked and overwhelmed, and I can no longer tell where my worth ends and my work begins.
My body has been sending signals for years.
The tightness in my chest. The anxiety that never quite switches off. A tiredness that sleep doesn't touch. I ignore every one of them, until that morning, when I can't.
Side note: I now teach leaders to read exactly the signals I spent years overriding. The irony isn't lost on me.
Maui, Hawai'i
A trip to Maui leads me to Kundalini yoga, to breathwork.
And to my first real understanding of the nervous system. I start releasing years of stored stress and seeing the patterns that have been running my life.
And I realise my exhaustion isn't only about work. It's about the way I'm working, living and relating to myself.
Knowing something has to change and actually changing it are two very different things.
I'm scared. Terrified, honestly. I feel responsible for my team, for my role protecting people online, and most of all for my mum, who gave up so much for me to be here. Leaving my career feels like walking away from everything I've worked for.
So I stay. I push through the exhaustion, override every warning and tell myself I can handle it.
Then life knocks me off my feet. Quite literally.
Surfing in Mexico, I'm hit by my own board and get a concussion. Three months of sick leave. The first real pause I've allowed myself in years.
In that stillness, I finally admit what I've been running from. I can't go back.
At the end of those three months, I book a one-way ticket to Maui. No perfect plan. Just a quiet certainty about the direction, and a decision to teach Kundalini yoga and share what had helped me.
What I understand now
Tolerance is how much you can take.
Capacity is how well you come back down.
I had built an enormous tolerance. My capacity was almost gone.
Mentored by
- Alyssa Nobriga
- Sat Dharam Kaur
- Martin McPhilimey
Since then, I've studied the scientific and the sacred side by side: nervous system regulation, breath science, somatic work and coaching, going deeper into trauma, resilience and what makes change last. Nine years on, I've lived in five countries and rebuilt my life around a very different idea of success.
Try one round now
Breathe in through your nose for a count of four, and out for a count of six. Five breaths.
Notice where you feel it, even if the change is small.
If your life looks right from the outside and feels heavy on the inside, it's rarely a lack of discipline. A nervous system that has carried a lot for a long time stops coming back down easily.
Credentials
What I've studied.
Certifications
- ICF Accredited Coach
- Certified Breathwork Facilitator
- E-RYT 500 Yoga Teacher Trainer
Additional education
Hons. BA, Social Anthropology and Communication Studies, York University, Toronto
Education
- Breath Science Practitioner Training, School of Breath Science2025
- Functional Breathing Instructor, Oxygen Advantage2024
- Mystic Astrology Apprenticeship, Rising Woman2024
- Coaching Mastery Certification with Alyssa Nobriga2022
- RESET Breathwork Facilitator Training2022
- Sound Healing and Tibetan Singing Bowls Training2019
- 300-hour Hatha and Ashtanga Yoga Certification2019
- Trauma, Transcendence and Transformation2018
- Mindfulness Meditation Training2018
- 220-hour Kundalini Yoga Certification2017
- STOTT PILATES Beginner to Intermediate Mat2009
The invitation
That's physiology, not character.
And it can change.
Usually over months rather than days.
Today I work with leaders, founders and entrepreneurs who are where I was in 2017: successful on paper, running on adrenaline underneath. I'm based in the Algarve, Portugal and Toronto, Canada, and work with clients online worldwide.