I know Heather from the Zoom calls at Creating the Impossible (CTI), an online course by Michael Neill. Her CTI project was to become a digital nomad. During the course she had lots of insights and shared her experience with all of us (400 participants). Her perspective on life had clearly changed a lot, so I thought she would be a good fit for my CTI project, the healing journey interviews. And I think I was right!
Her lesson for me: To show up as your authentic self and trust in attracting people who love you for what and how you really are. They will come and go. Trust! That sounds quite effortless and blissful to me.
What do you take out from CTI?
My main project was to heal and travel and see if I could work from other places. I never tried it because I’m a mom and have limited mobility. I moved my business online in 2020 and now I wanted to know what it’s like to travel and work. That was basically my project. And it felt really impossible at the beginning that I could make it happen. I had such a short amount of time to make decisions.
I really, really felt the call to just take some time for myself and renew and rejuvenate and also re-envision what I want to do with myself, my life and my business.
I remember, it was kind of a big deal for you to no longer be “Hypno Heather”. Why is that?
Yes, this is still unfolding. That has been my business for so long. I was just holding on to it. And now I had to go and be with myself and take this trip.
Part of the impossibility did feel like, what am I going to do if I’m no longer this brand? But the biggest insight that came to me was “Oh, I can just be Heather for a while.”
I wanted to let go of what is not really feeling aligned. But that can feel really scary.
“I don’t think anybody needs fixing.”
You are a hypnotherapist, right?
Yes, my business for the last 12 years has been hypnotherapy. And I have a school of hypnotherapy training, where I certify hypnotherapists. I also have been in the 3 P coaching world for over 4 years now.
Now I really see the value in hypnosis in terms of helping provide a more still space for people. So they are more likely to have insight and connection to their innate wisdom.
And I don’t think anybody needs fixing. I now have the courage to share more of what I have seen as a result of almost 8,000 hypnosis sessions.
What did you see?
At a certain point, it really struck me how everybody’s mind works in the same basic way. They might have different challenges and present differently emotionally, physically, or mentally, but everyone’s mind was working the same way.
It became really easy for me to help them into a space where they could potentially let go of the problem they thought they had.
How?
The best way I could describe it is like a mechanic would listen to a car and be like, ‘Oh, this isn’t functioning smoothly, we need to fix the carburetor.’
So for me, I started to notice when I’m listening to someone speak about what they’re going through or their challenges, that I could just see, ‘Oh, this is misinterpreting their experiences through their thoughts.’
And so it was very easy for me to help them see because I could see that it wasn’t a problem. It’s not like I had to convince them it wasn’t a problem, but it became really easy for me to help them into a space where they could potentially let go of the problem they thought they had.
Why did you embark on your travels? What needed to be healed?
In retrospect my heart for sure. I had been in what I would call a dark night of the soul. That really brought so much up for me over the last few years. The focus on moving my business online, moving to another city, losing my dad and all of the challenges that came with our society the last few years…
When I think of my first week in Mexico which was my first stop on my journey it took me days to just start to relax and slow down. There was a fear in me of having to do or having to have things figured out that was keeping me heightened. I think I really had to heal my relationship with fear and to help my physical body to slow down and be more present.
Where else did you go?
Mexico for 20 days, then Denver to meet a colleague. I stayed with her, did a breathwork session with her, a very spiritual journey. Then went to the Hay House Conference in Phoenix, Arizona. It was all about healing, wisdom, and insight – perfect timing to process what I’d already experienced in Mexico.
I felt like myself again within 10 days in Mexico. The second half, I explored more and rediscovered my joy, a new version of my authentic self. Taking this “new me” to the workshop and conference expanded my sense of who I am and my calling in life.
I am not the same woman that I was when I embarked on my journey as I am now.
What insights did you have on life and yourself?
I filled a big notebook with insights! The main thing I learned is that playing it safe hasn’t worked, even though I knew it. Now I see it clearly – it doesn’t give me what I need for life or business. Now I just need to create from this alive place within me, where I feel called to show up. Be part of bringing in the awakening, the new humanity that is more abundant and sustainable for everybody. I still don’t know what that really translates to.
There’s so much more, but a key one is resisting the safe zone. I don’t know how I got so attached to my business and identity, but it came from a place of needing to support myself and my son after my marriage ended. It worked then, but I’m not the same person anymore.
Did you find healing?
Absolutely. The journey transformed me. I am not the same woman that I was when I embarked on my journey as I am now.
I feel a bit of a vulnerability hangover.
You said your heart needed healing.
My heart’s still healing, for sure. It needed connection, light, and people. Being alone wasn’t healthy.
But the journey brought so much love. People loved the real me, wild or quiet, happy or sad. Healing is returning to yourself, showing up authentically, and attracting people who love the real you. That’s the biggest healing that I had.
I still feel so vulnerable and a bit of a vulnerability hangover.
What’s that?
Being vulnerable and showing your true self can be scary. There’s a feeling of “oversharing” sometimes, but the reward is attracting people who love the real me.
I guess I would leave it to the others to decide if they want to deal with that.
And that’s actually what’s great. The beauty that we all have free will. And that felt so healing to me: I was really totally myself and this person is there for me and loves me for what I am. That’s so healing.
I guess that means to also sometimes let go of people?
It does.
On traveling you constantly have to let go of people.
That can be a bit painful.
That’s so hard. That was part of my healing. Just letting people go and letting them make their own choices to be in your life or not. On traveling you constantly have to let go of people. It seems so much easier because we know: They are moving on, I’m moving on. But actually that’s a natural path of life. People are coming and going.
When we are out of our familiar structures and our daily life it’s so healing to not only understand it intellectually but really embody it I am okay, I am loved, I am cared for, I am able to connect, no matter where I am or what’s happening.
How did you finance your travels?
(Laughs) When I was at the Hay House Conference, I went to a session by Ken Honda. He’s this financial guru focused on happiness. He really helped me feel better about financing my trip, which basically came down to taking out a loan.
I had to go, you know? It was scary not having the savings, but I knew in my heart that I had to do it. But I still felt a little guilty, like it wasn’t the “right” thing to do.
Then Ken Honda was saying this amazing thing: “How beautiful! Someone trusted in your ability to pay this back and loaned you this money.” And it just hit me. Right! I had a financially successful business for many years, and that success gave someone the confidence to lend me the money. Reframing it that way helped me so much. Before, I was just thinking, “This is my time to rest and heal, and if this is how I have to do it, then so be it.”
I love it. I think courage is a major ingredient for a wonderful life.
That’s the last part of the project to see how it all comes together. When someone from outside looks at my project, they might say, “Why was that scary? Why was it impossible?” But it took so much courage. It really did feel impossible because it required so much trust and courage to just go where I knew I had to go.
It sounds like it was a very good decision.
We’ll see how it unfolds. But whatever happens, I’m good with me. I got good with myself on a whole new level. And I feel that’s such a valuable blessing. It’s priceless.
