My Crawl. My Kneel. My Walk. My First Breath Out to Movement Freedom

My Story

Why it all starts with taking our first breath..

Every performer who has push their bodies past the brink of exhaustion and force extremes knows this feeling when their bodies rebel- and suddenly fail us.  I was that kind of performer who pushed every cell in my body until it actually physically stopped working. 

In 2014, I was hospitalized for 5 days for gastrointestinal failure at age 38.  I woke up one morning with severe abdominal pain.  I was shocked to see that my abdomen had distended to the size of a full term pregnant belly.  There was intense pressure across my pelvic floor that compressed the nerves to my lower body.  I  had to be transported to the hospital by ambulance because I had lost the sensation to my feet which wasn't safe for driving myself there. 

When I returned home from the hospital 5 days later, I was very weak and could not move my body to do simple movements. I had lost a lot of muscle after my body had forced me to my bed ridden state. I had to start from crawling and would fatigue after crawling 5 feet before starting to move again.   I was having to learn how to move all over again like a baby, and it really made me angry, which turned into depression, and then isolation from everyone.

It took me 6 months to restore my digestive health back to movement regularity.   Since my digestive system had been weak and not optimally working, it affected my muscular system in a way that slowed me down in receiving the nutrients I needed to get stronger my muscles stronger.

I was forced to see that my body could not go back to my intensive 80 hour work schedule I was use to carrying.  I saw how my non-stop work style gave me ulcers, cramps, spasms, and eventually led to my  digestion system shutting down and landing me in the hospital.  I saw this as a sign and needed push for me to take better care of myself in mind, body, and spirit.

My diet prior to my hospitalization did not help my situation.  It consisted of red meat, poultry, dairy, seafood, vegetables, protein bars, powdered meals disguised as shakes, and gas station snacks for on the road eating.  I had long periods where I had to work through my meals, eat in my car, and wait until very late until the work was done before I could have time to eat. 

After listening to my dietician, my gastroenterologist,  and educating myself on the stress I was creating for my digestive system, over the course of 3 years, I found myself graduating to a vegan diet and lifestyle.   I scheduled eating regularly 5 meals a day.  This made significant changes in my energy levels and quickened my recovery periods in between my physical rehab. 

Along with moving to make the necessary changes my diet, I also moved my lifestyle to one with less stress.  Before, I was working as a physical therapist in a clinic while driving back and forth across Florida for work with professional athletic teams, and sometimes flying internationally with medical teams, and having to adjust my body to time zone changes and inconsistent eating schedules.  The time spent traveling and working took a toll on my mental and physical health which I notice is very much like performers on tour.  I eventually narrowed down my focus to work here in Fort Myers, Florida, which gave me less stomach aches from time away from my family and friends.

I took the lessons I learned from caring for professional athletes and performing artists, and put them towards my own movement company in 2019, Axis Movement.  I wanted to teach my clients about how to keep their bodies fit and resistant to injuries.  I believed that oftentimes, we get the cream, the brace, the athletic tape, the injections, the chiropractic adjustments, and the surgery, with the hope that it will help keep us moving.  It definitely helps for the time being, but what about when we have to try that movement again? Will that treatment hold up if we are asked to do that movement over and over a hundred times?

Until we find out what is the root cause that keeps us battling our pains in the first place.. the posture we are sitting in... or the movement pattern we keep doing...  we end up doing the same patterns and we find ourselves in the same situation 3 months later.  We stop short of getting to the root of the problem, and it is only a matter of time before we feel the symptoms again.

My aim is to get to the root of the movement or postural pattern that is causing the spasming, tightening, throbbing, grabbing, aching, slowing down, altering, and break down in our bodies.  Resetting, reinforcing, and reloading our movement patterns changes how we move. When we can change how we move, we can move well and can move the way we are being asked to move for the art of our sport.

Movement is a process made from scratch like cooking in that there are no shortcuts for getting the timing and winning combination to producing fluidity, consistency, and texture in our movements.  For some performers, it's feels like an out of body experience when you are no longer your body, and you are having to deliver and be the face of an entire network.. including company management teams, endorsements, campaigns, sponsorships, and family counting on your every move. 

I created Axis Movement to take you back to the movement level your injury stopped you at and build you from the ground up (non-weightbearing to standing progressions following the neuro-developmental sequence of how movement was originally programmed into your body).

During my recovery, I was developing stronger every year with the functional movement training and conditioning I was studying and doing with crossfitters, dancers, yoga students, and martial artists.  I stopped having to use my medications, and found that I was less sore and stiff from the way I use to train with fewer injury days.

I made it to 45 years old, and I am still challenging myself with dance performances, WODs, and ashtanga.  During my times backstage, onstage, on the field, and on the turf,  I have come back wiser, stronger and healthier.  I intensely study how to rehab performers as well as my own injuries that I sustained from trying out new moves, landing on my joints hard, going to the max,  breaking bones in my wrist and toes, putting incredible stress to my ligaments in my shoulder. hips, knees, and toes doing turns, jumps, partnering work, and more. 

One of the tough lessons for me to accept was that the way in which we advance our bodies in our 20's and 30's has to evolve into a healthier way going into our 40's, 50's and a more mindful way if we are still wanting to go at it in our 60's and 70's.

I have a passion for combining physical challenging movements and artistry like other visionary artists like you.  Together we can move you up to more time with your teammates, taking care of yourself and getting off the treatment tables.

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www.axismovement.org