We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Julie Turner a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Julie, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

I always say movement saved my life. When I was 23, I was a modern dancer in New York, working multiple restaurant jobs to pay my bills and pay for dance class in order to stay dedicated to my passion. I was also in an abusive relationship. That period of time is still difficult for me to think about, much less speak about, but it was dangerous and scary. I eventually got out of it by leaving my apartment and quitting my job. Once I was removed physically from the situation though, I began having severe panic attacks that lasted for years. However, even then, I remained extremely dedicated to dancing and moving my body. I started teaching Pilates and I also got certified to teach social dance and began teaching people their wedding dances. I started to notice my anxiety and panic attacks were much more manageable when I stayed physically active. I noticed, when I was teaching dance, my mind was able to focus on the movement and people in front of me and not my pain and fear. I also noticed that whenever I left a dance or Pilates class, I felt grounded and at home in my body. When I felt that way, I never had a panic attack. With that knowledge, I began to understand the physiological symptoms of panic, fear, and an unregulated nervous system. As I made these discoveries in my body, I found that physical alignment and nervous system regulation allowed me to process my emotions about my past experiences. It helped me heal mentally and enabled me to grow emotionally as well. I started setting better boundaries for myself and making healthier choices in all areas of my life and I believe with all of my heart this process helped me heal from the trauma I had experienced.

I wanted to know more, so I studied anatomy and movement endlessly and focused on movement that aligns the body and allows the mind to calm. I began noticing a strong connection between the physical and emotional bodies. I was fascinated by the way my clients were convinced they were healing on an emotional level through our work together. Once I realized how powerful movement could be, I vowed to help as many people possible. I had a lot of people with complex pain, illnesses or injuries coming to me at the time. I helped them see how the stress of their pain might actually be making it worse. This led me to my teaching practice where I help others make these discoveries in their bodies so they can heal pain on multiple levels. I was inspired to become a Reiki master because I have always had a strong intuition and felt it would enhance my teaching practice. I wanted to combine my personal experience with my desire to help others and that’s why I created Julie Turner Movement.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I have been a dancer since I was a young child so movement has always been integral to my life and well-being. During my pursuit of a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, I became really interested in movement as communication and healing. After graduating, I began my professional career as a modern dancer in New York, where I performed with several dance and multi-disciplinary theater companies. I also got certified to teach Pilates and Social dance. With Pilates, I was immediately drawn to injury prevention and healing so I worked primarily with people suffering from chronic pain and complex injuries. This focus taught me the unique complexities of the human body. As I mentioned before, I also taught and choreographed wedding dances. What I noticed with this work was how much teaching social dance was actually just teaching people how to communicate with their subtle bodies. The constant study of anatomy combined with the investigation of physical communication inspired me to get training to do other types of bodywork. Since my time in New York, I have completed continuing education in Pilates for multiple conditions, certifications in myofascial Release Massage, and I have become a Reiki Master. I also completed my MFA at George Washington University in 2017, where my focus was on emotional embodiment and how our unconscious thoughts get trapped in our physical bodies. I combine all of these techniques and my knowledge of dance to help people connect to their bodies on multiple levels. I started traveling as an instructor in 2012, which eventually brought me out to Los Angeles.

I primarily provide private sessions, but I also teach specialized workshops at partnering Pilates, Yoga and dance studios. My clients come to me because they have chronic pain or a specific injury from which they are trying to heal. Sometimes they feel like what they are facing emotionally is the root of their physical pain and want to address both areas.

I specialize in helping people discover the source of their pain and uncover faulty movement patterns by using a combination of Fascia Release and exercises derived from Pilates and dance technique. The goal is to help them get back to doing what they love as quickly as possible. I am well-versed in all exercise techniques and I teach people how to get the most out of their favorite activities and minimize their risk for injuries in the future. I also provide self-care tools and so they feel confident to continue the work on their own.

I practice Reiki when my clients are feeling low on energy and I help them connect their emotional bodies to their physical bodies by helping them uncover deeply rooted emotional blocks.

I like to guide people toward trusting their own intuition and becoming body aware so they feel happy with their bodies and confident in their approach to wellness. I also want my clients to leave feeling empowered and more in control of their own movement. I want people to feel like they are given the tools they need to help themselves. That way, no mater what activities they like to do, they can take the knowledge they learn in our sessions with them.

I have a friend who fell 5 stories from her roof in New York. She miraculously survived the fall and is now an ambulatory quadriplegic. I work with her virtually to retrain her muscles and rebuild neuro-transmitters in an effort to get her dancing again. I am most proud of my work with her because I was able to help her regain pelvic floor function after seven years of rehabilitation efforts that fell short. My mission is to heal as many people possible with movement and it makes me proud to have been able to help someone that means so much to me.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

Honestly, the best source of new clients for me has always been word of mouth and client testimonials. I think what I do is so specific, people want to hear about other’s experience to understand how it might benefit them. Second to word of mouth is social media. I get a lot of inquiries about my social media posts and I make a point to answer questions as thoroughly as I can. I believe staying consistent in my style and communication with clients is key to keeping them engaged.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I pride myself in my ability to pivot. I’ve moved, rebuilt, and evolved my business multiple times over the past 18 years. I love and embrace change in many ways and I have no problem making necessary shifts if it will change me for the better. I think the most important pivot was after the birth of my son. Becoming a mother inspired me to create a life for myself and my son that I could be proud of. I wanted him to feel supported and cared for in the best way possible and I knew the only way to to that was to take care of myself and level up in my business. It is what led me to leave New York and what eventually brought me to Los Angeles. I became a reiki master in LA and it is here where my business ideas evolved into what they are today.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.julieturnermovement.com
• Instagram: http://instagram.com/julieturnermvmt
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/julieturner-movement
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/julie-turner-19378a32/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@julieturnermovement

Image Credits
Ludovic Jolivet Angel Castellanos