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My Story

By admin | October 15, 2009

January 16, 1999– It was a day that changed my life forever. My husband, Dennis died in my arms that night. To watch someone you love more than anything suffer and die in pain was devastating to me. He was my first true love and I thought he would be my one and only love. He was my best friend, we did everything together. We worked together, coached basketball together, on the weekends we would hike or mountain bike together. Then he was gone. I was lost, crushed, devastated. I had lost my passion for living. I didn’t know where to turn.

I went to support groups and got individual therapy for 2 and a half years. I have a great family and they also helped me through it. When Dennis died I made a promise to myself to never let a loved one die a death like that ever again. I had to work on that promise. A few years later I became a hospice volunteer. I learned how to take care of people that are dying and how to understand when they are in the last stages of their life. I also learned how to bring them comfort . I could have used this information when Dennis was dying. He had leukemia and went through so much. He had chemotherapy, radiation, a bone marrow transplant and had all kinds of side effects and problems. He was in and out of the hospital, had emergency surgeries and was often in intensive care. He had endured so much, they were sticking needles in him right up until a few hours before his death. I would have done anything to have hospice with me at that time where our main concern would have been to keep him comfortable and out of pain. He was the first person I ever saw die. All of his suffering and the last few hours of his life were etched in my mind. I had to change that, I had a lot of healing to do. And I still had work to do on my promise.

In 2004 I went to an orientation meeting on hypnosis and how to become a hypnotherapist. I knew by the end of the class that that is what I was meant to do. I already had a degree in Psychology and was always interested in the mind and how we learn. After that class was over I already had a specialty to focus on–working with people with cancer and their families. I knew by using hypnotherapy I could make a difference in  peoples lives. Now I could help others deal with the side effects of chemo and radiation, pain, insomnia, after surgery healing, and all the stress and anxiety that they deal with everyday . When I was dealing with all of these issues with Dennis I had remembered how hopeless and helpless I had felt. I could now help others in the same situations.

 I had always hated school but now I couldn’t get enough. I studied everyday and went to some classes more than once. Now I felt better about my promise and I  had tools and techniques to make it come true. For the first time since Dennis died I had some passion back in my life. I was excited about hypnotherapy and knew I could be successful. I wanted to do whatever it took to be the best hypnotherapist that I could be. I now had a purpose in life again, I wanted to help others and make a difference in their lives. And I especially wanted to help people with cancer, I wanted to help them heal physically and emotionally. And if someone is at the end stages of their life I knew that I could help bring them peace.

My dad and step dad have also passed since Dennis’ death.  I have worked hard on my promise and now feel better about it. I have learned so much. I not only work as a Hypnotherapist I also work at the Wellness Community. I teach a Relaxation and Guided Imagery class every week that is free for the cancer patient and their family. And over the past 5 years I have been able to wake up everyday with a purpose and passion for life. Since I have been doing hypnotherapy and guided imagery I have found that by helping others heal I have also helped heal myself.

I offer Hypnotherapy in Chatsworth, Westlake Village, the San Fernando Valley and Conejo Valley.


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