Since I was young, I’ve been interested in the Flow State. Although I didn’t know what it was called at the time. When I was in my early 20s, I dated a jazz musician. I spent countless nights going to gigs all over the city. I saw many passionate, aspiring musicians as well as some of the biggest names in modern jazz in New York City. At the time I was a budding portrait artist and what I found most intriguing was the facial expressions on the musicians while in the heat of a long, free-form jam session. They appeared to be lifted, transcending their bodies as their minds floated and mingled somewhere above their heads. Their expressions were always the same, intently focused, almost slack jawed, yet euphoric. The other musicians would joke that their jam face was the same as their “sex face”. It was obvious to everyone when these musicians would reach this desired state of consciousness, which I now understand as the flow state. 

Flow in my Paintings

In awe of this transcendental state, I sought to document it in paintings. Using used and discarded snare drum skins, I would paint a series of jazz musicians in the throws of ecstasy while jamming. I continued to paint these musicians well after I graduated from art school. Long after I studied fine arts in Florence, started working at a restaurant to support my art career and got sucked into the food world. I continued to paint these musicians while I launched my own catering company and well into my years of studying holistic nutrition. Painting calmed me and fuelled me at the same time. And painting inspired, creative individuals did so even more. I’ve painted musicians in “the zone” for 12 years. 

After school and after working as a clinical nutritionist in a cardiology clinic, I was invited to join the teaching staff at The Institute of Holistic Nutrition (IHN). Although I felt nervous and excited, it was the perfect amount of skill vs challenge ratio for me to experience another example of being in a flow state. Teaching. It was a thrill to perform, share my knowledge and express my passion for holistic nutrition. I was fuelled by my “audience”, the wide-eyed, equally passionate nutritionists-to-be. Teaching is an excellent flow state trigger, but so is learning. I consider myself a “forever-student” and find that the best way to fill my cup is to learn a new skill. That’s why I continued my education within the realm of holistic nutrition. I studied iridology, a European, Harvard-backed assessment tool using markings in the eye to make correlations  with health outcomes. I also continued my education at IHN by studying natural designed pregnancy and early childhood. Learning a new skill is a wonderful flow trigger because it combines high concentration, complete attention and focus, while taking in new information. 

My Experience with Anxiety

Throughout my studies, I had learned about anxiety, how stress can throw off the balance of so many systems of the body, and how it can be a predictor of many chronic diseases. But I never understood it fully until it landed in my lap.

Anxiety hit me differently than I perceived in my clients.

For me it started with increased irritability. Everyone around me was ANNOYING! Then I started to get an eye twitch, my legs started to randomly become restless, my jaw would be tight from nighttime grinding and in a state of irrational fear and anxiety, I would perceive I had lockjaw. At night, I would sigh uncontrollably, trying to take in as much air as possible, but never able to take a satisfying inhale (I later learned this is known as air hunger). I would fear there wasn't enough air in the room. I would experience random tightening in my chest, like my lungs were in a vice. I would feel faint upon standing, especially during hot yoga. Once I neared black out with blurry tunnel vision. I went to a heart specialist, had everything checked out and he said, you’re low in sodium. Take sodium pills. What my doctor didn’t see was that all of these seemingly random symptoms were connected. I had HPA axis dysfunction, or what is sometimes referred to as Adrenal Fatigue. I learned how to balance my blood sugar, and found some stress-reducing activites, but the feeling of overwhelm was always at the surface. 

Pre and Post Natal Anxiety

Fast forward to 2020, when I became pregnant for the first time in a pandemic. Let me tell you, the health anxiety of being a pregnant knowledge-seeker can be dangerous. Especially when the world around you is falling apart. So I banned myself from google and prenatal books, and found nature instead. While nature walks helped, I began to deep-dive into why the studies around nature are so positive for mental health. A common link I found was that these activities switched-on the parasympathetic nervous system. Some of the most common and well researched being meditation and yoga. But also immersive nature walks and grounding, (connecting your body to the energy of the earth’s surface), art therapy, playing music, group sports, the list goes on. That’s when I fell down the rabbit hole of flow state and the neuroscience behind happiness. Not only is the parasympathetic nervous system activated which helps the body feel at ease, but the unique experience of flow states also activates the sympathetic nervous system, making attention razor-sharp and clear. The perfect balance of relaxation and focus.. The most fascinating thing I found about flow states was the ability to reset the nervous system from a state of survival mode, to a balanced state of peace and happiness. This is why Jazz musicians were studied by the psychologist who coined the term flow state, Csikszentmihalyi, for they could enter flow states regularly. 

Down the Rabbit Hole of Flow

I began to put together WHY I found cooking, teaching and painting so restorative. Why the effects lasted much longer than a weekend at the spa. Why were those musicians so euphoric looking? It was because of flow states. A way of filling up your cup while fueling your day with energy. A biohack to happiness. I knew I had to incorporate these principles into my clinical nutrition practice. I finally found a way to support my clients physiologically through nutrition but also MENTALLY with neuroscience. And the best part was that it could be adapted to each person's unique interests and activities. I could offer a truly holistic experience. 

I’m delighted to offer this unique program to you. I’ve put my everything into it. And I hope you can come away from Flowly with lifelong skills you can teach your family, who will then go on to teach their family. Principles of nutrition, herbal medicine, and flow states to find balance and happiness in everyday life.