Miranda Kisman
Holistic Health Practitioner
All of the aptitude tests I took as a child said the same thing - I would make a great therapist. I struggled with my self-esteem as a teen and became a lot of people's "friend" because they would find me when they were in crisis and they needed someone who would help them solve their problems. I wouldn't see them any other time. I took on a lot of other people's emotional baggage without anywhere to take it, and I felt used a lot of the time. I am not legally a therapist and am not marketing myself as a psychotherapist. I wanted to take my Masters in 2021 which would allow me to use the term. I'm glad I listened to my gut and learned what I did about reiki and herbs instead. My health would not have allowed me to be successful in 2021. It is still a piece of paper that I would like to get down the road, but do not currently possess the qualifications to call myself this.
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I've had more than 20 years of people trying to encourage me that I would make a great therapist or body worker if I ever decided to make the leap. In 2018, I started seeing private clients on top of the other jobs I had. I struggled with the idea of doing this full time even though all of my internal guidance told me this is what I'm here to do. In 2020 I had a major health collapse (not related to COVID) that took me until the start of 2023 to get back on my feet fully. I had to get to the bottom of ongoing health patterns now that my cycles were better regulated and weight less of a factor. I also needed to feel confident with my ability to not over-do the helping role. Holding space for people to heal is not the same thing as "healing"(saving/fixing) people. Learning those boundaries has brought me to a place where I'm finally excited to be putting myself out there in this role.
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I am a holistic health practitioner which means I struggle seeing physical problems as isolated to the physical body; and equally struggle to see mental health issues as isolated problems of the brain. I am someone who has always had strong empathic senses - I've known when my people were hurting before they reached out etc. I come to this role having spent several years making sure I'm not crazy when I say, I'm a pretty strong medical intuitive. I get a lot of information from people's body/bodies, and the more I let myself use those senses (with healthy boundaries) the more confident I am in them.
Photo Credit: dB Photography
"You are the hero of your own story"
Joseph Campbell
My Path to Here
My path to better physical and mental balance was finding the natural remedies to a lot of things. I am sensitive to chemicals, I have several food sensitivities, and even over the counter medications for basic things like pain, have caused me issues over the years. This next part is lengthy, but it goes over all of the pieces of me that I've picked up over the years that inform my practice and how I work with other people. I want to state this really prominently here for everyone to read though: Just because my path looked like this, doesn't mean that everyone's does. Example: I don't think taking medication for ADHD will help me more than it would hurt me. I have recently put one of my kids on the medication path and support my friends/family/clients who choose to do so. Just because something didn't make sense for me - doesn't mean I won't support you. I care that you make informed decisions about YOU as I have done so for myself.
Consumer/Survivor
Self-Diagnosed
Neurodivergent
Bachelor of Social Work
2003-2007
Narrative Theory Enthusiast
Health Care Veteran
2007-2017
Yoga Enthusiast turning Yoga Teacher
Expected Summer 2024
Hippie Generalist
Death Doula
2020
Medical Intuitive
2021
Soul Worker
2015 - 2021
Budgeoning Herbalist
2021
Reiki Practitioner
2021
My Healing Identities
I grew up in the 90s in a single mother household. I talk with a lot of people about how growing up "white trash" impacted them (food security issues, poor money habits, needing to unpack racial privilege etc). I have always been able to recall incidents where I was molested in my childhood. I had several people ask me as an adult if I was SURE X hadn't assaulted me before that. My intellectual brain agreed with them - when I hit social work school especially - I could see the scars on my psyche in my behaviour but I would not let myself admit that it happened. I spent a lot of years breathing fire, struggling to hold a job, have no self worth, dealing with outrageous periods and PMDD, and self-medicating. I connected the dots in 2020 when someone close to me died that my early years had been a lot worse than I let myself acknowledge. I am a survivor of childhood s*xual assault (CSA) and work with a lot of people with adverse childhood experiences that still have a hold on their daily life.
I grew up between 2 boys who fit the classic definition of ADHD. They were impulsive, angry, and struggling with school/authority. I was really harsh with myself through my 20s because as a girl, the only label that fit my behaviour was Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) or that I was just a horrible, worthless human being. I've come to the realization that BPD is Trauma + Autism/ADHD. When you peel back the trauma layers, adjust the environment, and learn how to be mindful/incorporate what you need as a neurodivergent person - I don't look like I have BPD anymore. I tried to seek diagnosis as an adult and had two horrible experiences with doctors - one who told me that people like me were trying to dilute the diagnosis. I no longer say I'm undiagnosed - I know I'm Autistic, I know I have ADHD. They were both hard to swallow at first, but it's been life changing - unmasking and learning who I am as authentic me. I put this early in the timeline because it's been a part of me my entire life - I always just assumed there was something wrong with me (I'm just a worthless ...). Having kids and realizing they fit the criteria, is where (2019-2020) I finally accepted that these are labels also apply to me. I don't need the validation of having the AuDHD label externally given. I am seeking out diagnoses for some of the secondary physical issues that are commonly comorbid and provide a better explanation about pain and energy level issues than "I am incapable of doing anything meaningful". I am capable of a lot when I am able to regulate and work within my limits.
Being a consumer survivor who kept being told over and over that my calling had to be in a helping profession, Social Work seemed like a good fit. I knew I didn't like blood and couldn't stand the injustices that were happening in our world. I went to a school that had an anti-oppression (AOP) focus. I am grateful for those 4 years and how they forced me to unpack my own privilege and learn to work with people from a more open perspective. It's kept me grounded over the years as I've wandered down the hippie dippie trail. One of my other big take aways from the program was to have healthy boundaries with your work or you would burn out, and to not take on clients until you were ready to not work on yourself with them.
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I only have a Bachelor so it is important to note that I cannot and do not refer to myself as a talk/psycho therapist. Everything that I do is from a reiki/holistic lens, and talking through old hurts is a big part of that. Coaching on how to better implement new habits also falls into the talking sphere.
Things that really sucked me in while in school: psychology in general - studying people's behaviours and motivations. Jungian psychology but also other developmental theories are intrinsic to how I conduct myself professionally. I love theory that supports things I had observed about people, and Jung's work with the collective unconscious and archetypes impacted me greatly. You have no idea how often I end up with theme days - it's like everyone's psyche is working through the same theme on the same day. I am forever fascinated by how our early experiences impact our long term development. The thing that fascinated me the most though was narrative theory. I had always been a writer and had used writing stories to help me work through issues. I think there is real power in telling someone like me your story. I love finding patterns and potentials for you to start doing things differently. You have it in you to change how your story ends, but that means breaking harmful patterns, letting go of the victim in you, and learning new ways of doing things. You can't control what happened to you in your early experiences, but taking ownership over your story lets you be more in control of what you do going forward.
I did not feel comfortable working in my field after graduation. I took a couple of interviews that I did not do well in. I landed in a health care scheduling role. I had been working as a personal support worker/developmental support worker while in school. I spent a lot of time in this decade on call for extended periods. The constant stress of emergencies and not having enough down time eventually lead to a burn out.
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What it taught me was: How to handle high volume workloads, how to manage crises calmly, how to be a strong advocate, and how to deliver bad news. If you've ever had to tell a nurse to take a break or ever had to argue with a doctor that their decision to send someone home wasn't sound - let me fill you in, you have to learn how to have a backbone fast. In terms of health coaching, it means that I'm really good at helping you navigate our medical system and learn how to be firm with your doctors about respecting your wishes.
I graduated university in 2007 burnt out and not able to do a masters like I thought I would need for the kinds of work I wanted to eventually do. I was morbidly obese and I wanted to focus on my health and nutrition. I had grown up in a home where potatoes were considered a vegetable and exercise was non-existent. I lost 60 pounds in 6 months. I joined a gym at that point but felt really uncomfortable. About 6 months into using cardio equipment and learning a weight routine, I decided I would try a yoga class that only had a few people in it. I loved it. I was really inflexible and attributed it to my weight. I wanted to keep at it. I would go on to feel confident enough to join busier classes and to branch out to other types of classes, but yoga had my heart. I read what philosophy books I could get my hands on. I got myself a mat and some DVDs for home. The DVDs didn't last long, I wasn't a fan of following along when I didn't need to and it's how I learned to listen to my own body and intuition - by intuitively building the practice I needed every time I came to my mat. I eventually couldn't afford classes anymore, but my mat is something I've always come back to. I've slowly increased my flexibility over time and have rehabbed several injuries/issues over the years using yoga. When I started taking private clients, I could no longer deny that I had become a body worker - giving people poses to help them work through stored trauma is an integral part of my practice. I am in the process of doing a self-paced yoga teaching certificate so that I can finally say I'm a yoga teacher.
I left university having taken a psychology course in Eastern Philosophy and how it overlapped with Western Pscyhology. I spent a decade doing a deep dive into whatever I felted called to. Reading about chakras, meridians, and energy bodies made me feel more at home. I knew I was sensitive to people's energy and finally having words to talk about things that I could sense and feel really resonated with me. I self studied in a bunch of different philosophies. In my 30s, arechtypes kept calling to me - I spent a chunk of time learning the tarot and astrology. I'm not an expert in either of these things, but appreciate the symbolism in them and how they present the major archetypes in a way that people can understand and digest.
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I turned my nose up at herbs, crystals, and oils for a very long time. Herbs gave me my life back in 2021, I had to stop bad mouthing them. More about that below. I know bits and pieces about crystals and will recommend them to people who appreciate them and like them. I like them for grounding with, and wear necklaces made from them to events because they make for wonderful fidgets that I can't lose because they are attached to me. I'm a moderate person about oils at this point. There is science to back up some oils. Using Tea Tree oil as an example, many of us have used this for headlice because it's effective. I recommend oils and oil blends to people with trauma mainly because our sense of smell is the strongest sense we have in terms of coding trauma in to the psyche and body. I like pairing oils with calming down activities etc because it has the power to reprogram your fight/flight response.
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My main take away from my years of self-study is that everything has it's own vibration and frequency. Some of us are sensitive to those frequencies and can sense and feel other people. The more that I let myself acknowledge what I was feeling, the calmer I've gotten.
Opening up to doing soul work meant that I couldn't ignore this part of me that feels very strongly about helping as many people as I can reduce their death anxiety. A lot of people live in a hypervigilant state worrying about something that is inevitable and a part of the natural cycle. I took a death doula certificate because I knew when I was ready to practice, I would want to work with people who are dying and wanted to resolve some of their soul/emotional/familial conflicts before passing. I took it when I did because I had lost someone important to me, and it was the right time to study the content.
I was 4 the first time I have a memory of picking up on someone else's body. I have a much stronger memory from when I was 7. I wasn't in the same room as the person, but I could feel their tooth being pulled. I screamed, it scared the nurse enough to go get my mom. I learned very quickly to shut up about what I could feel. I had a raging sugar addiction that got worse after University because I realized a lot of my experiences were not normal. The more sugar I consumed, the less I could feel. I eventually also found marijuana that would shut off my nightmares and the combination made me pretty volatile at times, but numb the rest of the time.
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Having my kids meant that I ate a lot better for long periods and had enforced periods of sobriety. Combine that with having to care for them - I couldn't ignore my feelings/senses anymore. Part of my path with my oldest, lead me to a woman who, the more I came back, the more I realized how similar we were. I mentored with this person in 2021 for a year - it helped me get to the bottom of how to work with my senses. I learned a muscle testing technique from my mentor that has made my life a lot easier. The inside of my head is a lot calmer - I'm no longer overwhelmed with information I can't process. I've modified the technique heavily to be easier for me to process the information I get.
In 2022, I tried to shut this part of me down again several times because I needed some time to rebel against being in a helping role. It took me an entire other year to come to terms with the fact that: the more I worked with what I can do, the less it feels like a burden. As much as I felt forced into this kind of work, helping people in a healthy way is so much of who I am. Boundaries and knowing my own limits are a blessing.
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I worry about advertising myself like this, but I wouldn't be authentic if I didn't. I work with a lot of rational skeptics because people learn for themselves really quickly: I'm not a snakeoil salesman. I was a rational skeptic for a long time. Opening up to this side of myself was a long, hard battle. I work with people where they are at as long as they are respectful of me. I'm too Autistic to lie to people. If I don't think I can do anything for you - I'm going to tell you.
One of my kids kept asking me about things they could sense in their room from 2015-2016. Having this kid ask me about things I was also picking up on made it harder to deny that I was feeling more than people's bodies. It feels really cocky to declare yourself someone who can guide people in the realm of spirit, but I also can't deny that a lot of people who find me are needing some guidance about spirit. A lot of people have used me over the years to weigh pros and cons of paths, my advice has always come from a soul place, but I never felt comfortable explaining it. My friends and family stopped arguing with me years ago because we've all learned the hard way to trust my gut when I feel strongly about something. Unpacking some of the melt downs I had in my childhood and even into my 20s has made me realize how often my overwhelm came from not be willing to acknowledge or process information I had at the soul level.
This piece of myself is why it's taken me so long to feel comfortable advertising my work. I know I'm a fully grounded person, but we live in a world where people who talk about spirit are not treated well. Doing my reiki classes solidified for me that I can't do this type of work without being authentic and honest about what I do. I can see the path that leads me to wanting to be ordained (officiating weddings), but will never call myself the P word - it's uncomfortable. I also don't like the S word I keep coming back to because it feels like cultural appropriation. I just refer to this part of myself as doing "soul work".
I have had horrible experiences taking medication all through my life. I gave up on the idea that I needed to put things in my body to help bring about better mental and physical balance. I had a severe infection in 2020 that I tried to power through. I am a tank when something needs to get done, but in 2021 when I tried mentoring, the brain fog, physical exhaustion and lack of retention was obvious. I needed some help cleaning and clearing my blood out. The muscle testing technique my mentor uses relies heavily (in their practice) on recommending herbs. I don't make recommendations to people who don't ask. I'm still learning myself and direct a lot of people to their medical provider. After watching my mental health improve drastically with better nutrient balances - there are some supplements I will take for life. My hormone imbalances are finally starting to calm down after consistent herb use. I am grateful for finally finding treatments that work for me and do not have unpleasant secondary impact.
I am a level 2 reiki practitioner in the Usuii Method. I doubt very highly that I will ever go for my Master certificate. I've always avoided Reiki - when I took my deep dive after university, I read a bit but was very put off by it. Doing my classes to get to this level, I realized really quickly that I wasn't going to have a profound opening up experience the way a lot of people describe. The "healing energy" people kept describing about me, is reiki. It's such a core part of me, that I wouldn't be able to turn it off if I wanted.
Parsing together what I know - we are all energy. Our own unique energy flows through us. Reiki is a practice that helps energy flow better and helps break up/work through blocks in that system. Whether you join me in a chair or on my table, reiki is a part of what I do. I'm really excited to find a treatment space that I can provide regular table treatments out of. Having only access to narrative sessions for the last year or so has been hard on me. As much as I rejected the idea of doing this, it's the part of my practice that I'm most excited to grow.