About Me

Welcome! I am so happy you are here.

I'm Dr. Jen, dentist by profession and self-development nerd by passion.

I grew up in the northeast of the United States and have felt drawn to learning about the mind, consciousness, and intuition for as long as I can remember.

I experienced some normal ups and downs as a kid, as well as some more extreme ones.

Seasonal depression was a massive struggle for years, and when I was 17, I experienced the death of a young family member, leading to the lowest low I've ever felt.

However, a strange thing happened the summer that I was 15. I experienced heightened awareness and unimaginable peace. I felt ineffably connected to everything around me. I also felt more authentic than I ever had, yet at the same time felt that a higher power was acting through me.

I experienced life WITHOUT the often negative mental chatter we tend to experience as humans. Events and experiences that would have been deemed negative under normal circumstances felt equally peaceful to positive ones.

I felt that I could show up as exactly what another person needed in a given moment, yet my boundaries were effortlessly firm.

Interestingly, I also felt incredible about my physical body, and unattached to narratives that people (especially women and teens) experience about their physical selves. My health felt effortlessly robust.

For over a decade I wrote this experience off as some sort of final vestige of a childlike state of mind, or simply a time when a lot of things fell into place.

In my late 20's, another low led me to evaluate what occurred. I had finished graduate school a few years prior, hustled to pay off my six-figure student loans, and succeeded. I had recently married my dream partner and we had purchased a home that we loved. I was relatively healthy and happy with my physical self. There was no longer anything external in my life pulling me toward the illusion of happiness in another accomplishment or acquisition.

Yet, I struggled with mysterious dark moods a LOT. I felt insecure professionally and personally. Many friendships felt insincere and like far too much work. At times, I felt crippling anxiety. At times, it would disappear and I would remember traces of that summer.

Which led me to question it. What was that experience? Was it something I could learn to experience more intentionally and sustainably?

Thus began my journey of deconstruction and reconstruction of self, combined with a LOT of learning. Examining beliefs, patterns, insecurities, traumas, and reactions. Getting honest with myself about my participation in self-destructive habits and anxious quirks. Asking those who knew me well for honest feedback.

As scary as this was, I learned quickly that the discomfort following, say, a coworker pointing out how poorly my non-verbals come across actually dissolves pretty quickly. Slowly, I grew more comfortable with discomfort. I waded more and more into the inner workings of myself and my subconscious beliefs and patterns. I have even started to look forward to these uncomfortable moments, knowing I am capable of surviving them with less and less effort, and that just on the other side of them is immense emotional freedom.

I am now 8 years into this journey. It has been life-changing, to say the least.

I would now describe the experience I had that summer as a spontaneous dissolution of ego. An evaporation of the often negative mental chatter we experience as humans that clouds our reality. Eckhart Tolle and Dr. David Hawkins both describe this state well in their various books.

Today I wouldn't say I experience it effortlessly or all the time, but after years of shedding internal layers and listening to what is authentic to me, I can confidently say that I experience this state frequently and for a fairly sustained period. It generally isn't as heightened as it was that summer, but there is a peaceful energy and greater ability to remain grounded within myself despite external chaos. I often feel unbelievably safe in my own body.

When I get triggered, the intensity is less and the length of time is MUCH less. Plus, with the perspective of knowing valuable lessons and a deeper sense of peace and clarity await on the other side, bearing the discomfort of an emotional trigger doesn't feel much different than doing an extra set of a difficult exercise.

So why this blog? I have a desire to share what I've learned. If any tiny thing proves helpful or helps create a shift in momentum for someone, that would feel incredibly meaningful.

Also, I am a coach. Or more specifically, a 'Burnout to Balance Mentor'. My Instagram audience helped me come up with the name!

Learn more here.

I now have two young children and work 12 hours per week in my profession. My husband and I are debt-free (including our mortgage). It feels meaningful to shift energy into this.

Please interact. Send me a message. What content would you like more of?

I recently created an Instagram account with video content (@grounded.with.jen).

I hope this message finds you well and creates a feeling of safety and hopefulness for what is possible all within the realm of your mind, body, and consciousness. Namaste!

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