About Me
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I am a "wounded Healer". My "wounding" comes from childhood trauma and living with an almost life-long undiagnosed and mis-diagnosed mental illness. My new book is a memoir comprised mostly of the way my life with mental illness unfolded and the wholeness that I found in the re-telling and re-interpreting of the story that I had been told since infancy. My desire is that the telling of my story will help others who suffer with mental illness and people who care about and for them find a renewed sense of hope and determination to live the best life possible. We embrace the fact that we are perfect just the way we are created, that we have a purpose while we are on this earth, that we all have a legacy to leave when we are gone, and that we have the creativity and courage to do all those things. Welcome to my world.
The boring stuff: I was born in Indiana and raised in Florida. I earned a degree in voice and then went on to complete a Masters' of Divinity Degree with specialties in Pastoral Counseling and Spiritual Formation. In 1978 I was ordained by the Southern Baptist Convention. I then earned a Maters’ Degree in Religion and pursued graduate studies in New York City in the fields of Ethics and Women in American Church History.
Beginning in the late 1980s, I was employed in the areas of child welfare, domestic violence and staff development while continuing to hold various part-time ministry positions. I was also a training consultant throughout New York State for the Department of Children and Families and several other agencies. After returning to Florida, I engaged in full-time ministerial work in the Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches. I am blissfully retired and while I retain ordination status as retired clergy, I am no longer active in professional work in churches except as an officiant at ceremonies and celebrations.
I am a Level Three Reiki practitioner, a certified Animal Reiki practitioner, and a Shamanic Practitioner. I am an artist, poet, writer, public speaker, musician, and an active blogger. I live in Central Florida with little Finian, my best friend and constant companion dog. I am a proud mother of one son and daughter-in-law, and a happy grandmother of two delightful grandchildren.
I have been in recovery from prescription drug abuse and alcoholism for over 33 years. More importantly, I am a survivor of a lifetime of mental illness and have explored the relationship between mental illness and spirituality for decades. I recently published her first book (a memoir): The Journey of a Wounded Healer: the Mystical Web of Mental Illness and Spirituality.
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