In this blog post Mystic Mag dives into the world of Susi Vine, a wellness expert who offers a unique blend of stress-busting techniques. From Stress Transformation Coaching to Crystal Singing Bowl Meditations, Flower Essence support, and Home Health Assessments, Susi empowers individuals to reclaim control of their health and happiness.
Can you provide an overview of your practice in Stress Transformation Coaching, Crystal Singing Bowl Meditations, Flower Essence Support, and Home Health Assessment, and what inspired you to specialize in these modalities?
It is a very diverse assortment of tools! My initial and primary focus is helping people recognize that they can reclaim control of their health and feel happier by resolving stress through three aspects: physical, emotional and environmental.
So as my stress coaching practice has grown, it has come to encompass more diverse modalities, such as the Bach flower essence remedies which are such a beautiful way to find support in feeling more emotionally balanced, and most recently sound healing with the crystal singing bowls and rhythm instruments. We are energetic beings! And the energy of sound and vibrational remedies have a phenomenal capacity to help us be more aligned and congruent without introducing more substances for our bodies to digest, absorb and metabolize when they are already carrying a burden from the environment we live in. By helping clients discover the “sneaky stressors” hiding out in the kitchen and bathroom, they’re able to lighten their chronic stress load so they have access to more resilience. Together, the modalities I bring to the table really help to get to the root of imbalance, so people can enjoy the most miraculous benefit of all, the body’s innate ability to come back into balance and heal itself.
Stress Transformation Coaching, Crystal Singing Bowl Meditations, Flower Essence Support, and Home Health Assessment offer unique approaches to wellness and stress management. How do you integrate these modalities into your practice to support the diverse needs of your clients?
I work with every client to discover their unique priorities in helping to resolve stress and promote resilience. For most people who come to work with me, their primary concern is resolving stress or burnout arising from work concerns, which may begin with helping them to identify aligned priorities and reinforce healthy boundaries. Once the more extreme aspects of stress are better managed, we can continue working more subtly through the emotions and restoring social connection. A common issue of someone living under extreme stress is withdrawal and isolation, which is heartbreaking to see since feeling more deeply connected with others is a powerful antidote to stress. Introducing sound healing with the crystal singing bowls and rhythm instruments has been a wonderful way to create community through group meditations, as well as facilitate healing and balance for my clients.
Often we need to work through the different aspects of stress, emotional then physical and environmental, in layers. As some acute situations are resolved we can then move on to the next issue, which may be a less intense but more chronic influence in their lives. Ultimately my clients are able to recognize that their stress response is separate from the situations that cause stress in their lives, and they are able to manage their reactions in a healthier way with perspective and confidence. Working with Bach flower essences brings intention to this attention on how they are feeling and how they’d like to feel. These gentle remedies are safe for people (and pets!) of any age, and provide energetic support to help ease worries, lift mood, support focus and build confidence. With the support of custom blends it’s possible to really target specific situations and bring emotions back into balance so that it’s easier to commit to the lifestyle changes that may be needed to live a less stressful and more aligned life.
Beyond these aspects of mental and emotional stress, the influence of our home and work environments can’t be underestimated. We spend almost all of our time indoors! I work remotely as well as in person, so with the convenience of technology I can still walk with someone through their home to identify potential toxins or optimize aspects such as “natural” lighting and fresh air. Helping clients take a closer look at their home environment addresses an often overlooked aspect of our health hiding right under our noses. The products that we buy to clean our homes and use on our bodies often contain ingredients that can be harmful to hormone balance or cause allergies and sensitivities. By addressing these chronic stressors we can create more capacity for resilience in the body so that it is better prepared to meet stress as it shows up in our daily lives.
Stress Transformation Coaching focuses on helping individuals navigate and overcome stressors in their lives. How do you tailor your coaching sessions to address the specific stressors and challenges that your clients face?
I always begin by using a few different assessment tools, so that we can identify both the primary stressors as well as the “sneaky stressors” that are adding up to compromise resilience. With that perspective and the client’s personal priority in mind then we develop a plan to begin making small changes to correct course and move away from a life that’s fueled by stress. Many people are surprised to discover just how much they’ve come to rely on stress to help them “get things done”, even though it can become an unhealthy pattern. Together we rediscover the ways to employ healthy stress (eustress) as well as the more sustainable drives of passion, curiosity and collaboration. I love to start incorporating each client’s unique, inherent strengths at the beginning of the process so they can start celebrating what comes naturally for them and recognize how they can bring these talents to their work individually and especially in teams. Another habit that I encourage every client to create is breaking any process down into stages and looking for milestones of progress. This is essential so we can begin celebrating all of the victories along the path toward reaching their goals! By recognizing their growth and really becoming present to it, clients begin honoring their progress which builds confidence and expands their potential as they begin to actually enjoy the journey, instead of basing their satisfaction and happiness only on reaching the finish line, and achieving a particular goal.
Crystal Singing Bowl Meditations are known for their ability to induce relaxation and promote energetic balance. How do you incorporate these meditative experiences into your practice, and what benefits do your clients experience from sound healing?
Introducing meditation events with the Crystal Singing Bowls has created an entirely new point of introduction as clients have been finding me through local events. And whenever possible, I highly encourage people to attend a sound healing event in person! But again, thanks to technology and the potential of energetic connection that knows no distance, through livestreams and recorded meditations we can not only gather across distance, but I’ve had clients make sound baths a part of their daily meditation practice. I hear reports of relief from chronic pain, quieting the mind and optimizing focus, gaining powerful personal and spiritual insights from participants.
As energetic beings, our natural state is one of coherence. We become entrained with others as we share space with them and can measure that our respiration and heartbeats come into sync. With the beautiful sounds created by singing bowls our minds are invited to find calm, and move from the higher frequency and activity of gamma and beta brainwaves to more focused alpha and meditative and restful theta and delta brainwaves. For people who struggle to meditate this can be a game changer. The tones give you something to bring your awareness to as your mind wanders, and the frequencies invite you to find a stillness and peace that can otherwise be very elusive.
Flower Essence Support involves using flower essences to address emotional and energetic imbalances. Can you share insights into how you select and prescribe flower essences for your clients, and what outcomes have you observed in terms of emotional well-being?
There are flower essences available from sources around the world, from the perhaps best known Bach’s 38 essences arising from his studies in Wales to Alaskan, Australian, North American, Southwest American desert, and many more. I primarily use Bach flowers because I know them so intimately but I encourage clients to build relationships with remedies that speak to them, and I’m always expanding my repertoire.
I begin with clients by sharing a questionnaire because it can draw attention to areas of emotional discomfort that may be outside of their awareness. But the primary recommendations come from a conversation where we can explore what they’re currently feeling or dealing with in their lives. I have some standard combinations that I share for general topics like improving sleep, better focus and concentration, support in decluttering, and for caregivers, however the magic is in really landing on the unique blend of remedies that address the present, and this can change quickly. If we’re working on a strong acute situation or tackling a deeper, long standing pattern then it’s best to check in on the remedy weekly. I can ship bottles within the US, but Bach flower essence kits are pretty widely available and I encourage clients to have one whenever possible. As the small bottles are depleted then you can order more to refill those, and having remedies at your fingertips to help everyone in the family is so empowering. I’ve created a digital workshop that introduces people to using Bach flowers at home, and hearing from clients about their success in supporting their families through issues at school or navigating different stages of life just means the world to me.
I have clients who have experienced breakthroughs at work in collaborating more easily with teams, relationships becoming less confrontational and more loving, long standing habits finally being dropped, and I’ve heard stories of children beginning to speak about their anxieties or night terrors, the ability to focus and have less impact from hyperactivity or compulsive behaviors. Although I primarily work with adults, when my clients begin using these approaches with their own family then I know that real generational healing is happening! I wish I was raised with a more complete vocabulary of emotions, and we are seeing this happen with younger generations. I can see real potential for this awareness to change society at large.
Home Health Assessment suggests a holistic approach to well-being by evaluating various aspects of one’s living environment. How do you conduct these assessments, and how do you use the findings to support your clients’ health and wellness goals?
Environmental health is a personal passion of mine, having become sensitized to chemicals when I worked backstage in theater. Sometimes the magic that you see on stage requires some nasty stuff, and even low levels of exposure over time can add up. This really opened my eyes to the impact of what we have all around us as we move through the world. Lately we’ve been hearing more about PFAS chemicals in water and plastics permeating our natural spaces, but there is so much more to watch out for and then it can all become very overwhelming. I’m all about education but I also recognize that when we get overwhelmed, then nothing changes.
In order to help clients make changes that they can live with, I always encourage them to start small, and start with what feels most important to them. If they have digestive issues or skin sensitivity then I want to start in the bathroom and laundry, taking a look at the products we use for skin care and cleaning our clothes, since clothing becomes our second skin. Products with fragrance usually contain phthalates although they are not listed on the label, and these can wreak havoc on hormonal balance.
If someone is working from home then I like to start with the ergonomics of their workstation to avoid physical stresses that compound over the hours, days, weeks, and years that we spend at a desk. Optimizing natural light while limiting blue light, especially at the end of the day can help to resolve sleep issues so they have a chance to rest and recover, and addressing any issues with ventilation so that they have clean air are also priorities. As with all aspects of supporting more balance in living a life where we are constantly meeting stressors, having a supporting and healing home environment can play a vital role in restoring health not only physically but also mentally and emotionally.
